Through the Eyes of a Servant
by Shadowed White Rosebud
Summary: When a tragedy occurs in Max's family, a job as a maid in Fang's household could be her only option. As she stays and falls for Fang, will they have the strength to stay together, with everything in their way? AU. FAX and Niggy!
1. Prologue

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Prologue | **by: Rachel // Chapter posted May 9th, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG // 1,723 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 // The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews. _

* * *

From the moment Maximum Ride stepped up to the grand house, her life changed forever. She might not have known it, but there were bigger things in store for her than just a job as a common maid to the family that dwelt inside the walls of the house. No, house was the wrong word. She stood on the front porch, a grand wrap-around porch, of an old southern mansion. But it might have been built yesterday, what with the fresh paint, well tended gardens, and quiet order of the estate.

The warm summer air brushed against her comfortingly, but brought no courage as she thought of what was about to happen, and what could never get better. What could not be fixed by going back, but only by going forward.

A trembling hand clutched the address firmly. This had to be the right house, she thought, but checked the number again, for the fifth time in fifteen seconds. _The job is half done when you take the first step,_ she recited in her head, thinking of the old childhood saying that her mother had always used before…before everything changed. But there would be no looking back on that now.

Just looking at the mansion made her feel queasy and sick to her stomach. A poor girl from a poor family; that was the way it had always been. It had become only recently. Her father, an author, had lost his other job, the one that paid for everything they had, and everything she did. It had landed her from the lower middle class down into nothingness, leaving friends, family and old life behind for a new town, and a smaller house.

The new job was to ensure security –at least some- and to provide extra financial support for her family –though it was dwindling, she thought bitterly-. Working as a maid hadn't been her idea. It was simply the best paying job they could find, not to mention having the best hours and the best perks of working in clean conditions, rather than a fast food restaurant.

No, nothing had been her idea. It hadn't been her idea that something so terrible, so incredibly inhuman, as natural as it had been, would happen to them. It hadn't been her idea to move to a new place and get used to the new living conditions. It wasn't as if she hadn't had a life. It wasn't as if she hadn't had a boyfriend, a school, goals for the future, and everything a normal teen could ever have.

And worst of all, it had been her seventeenth birthday when the terrible, unspeakable thing had happened.

That was why she would never forget. As long as she survived and had a birthday, every March the thirteenth, to be exact, she would think of it, and it would just bring on another fresh burst of tears and unhappiness. Before it had happened, she had been a downright brat to her parents, relying on them for a phone bill that was always high and staying out later than most delinquents did for whatever reason.

It was over now. It wasn't right for a young girl to have something traumatic happen to them, something so terrible it made a bright, sunny day seem like an endless night in a horror movie.

Looking up now, she couldn't help but wonder why anyone needed so much money. Large ionic columns stretched to what seemed to be the sky, thousand-dollar fountains and lawn ornaments in perfect condition, and many, many servants like the one that she would hopefully become, inside the walls of the house; there were so many things that no one needed to be happy, and she would know because she was happy once upon a dream.

_There's probably a monarchy living inside the gold-coated walls of that damn house. _

She gagged in disgust at the thought of working for someone as idiotic as a perfect little prince or princess with nothing better to do than to paint bowls of fruit or read something snotty and so classically 'rich kid', like Hamlet or something to that effect.

And she didn't think she was better than them. She just looked down on them in every imaginable way.

But she needed this job. If they were idiots, she depended on the idiots for the money to buy food, let alone clothes and the electricity bill. She was just pathetic enough to actually depend on the idiots she looked down on. That's why her hand was trembling as she tapped lightly on the door, praying that no one would answer.

But of course all hopes were dashed as soon as the door was opened. Dressed in only the finest clothes, and jewelry that hung on her, very obviously worth thousands of dollars, this must have been the mistress of the house that greeted her with nothing more than a formal greeting and a quick once-over to make sure the poor girl wasn't a total freak.

She had hawklike features that were pointed and hostile. Shoulder-length brown hair hung down and pooled around her neck, giving her an aura that demanded respect, and therefore forced Max to give it to her. She was immediately struck with the fear of the reality of the situation, and her eyes widened. Before she could even stop herself, she had turned and ran. And she didn't stop running until she was out of sight of the great and terrible house.

* * *

From the upstairs window, unseen by the fleeing girl, sat the quiet, unsmiling boy. Everyone who came to the grand house in the last seventeen years of his life had gushed like a schoolgirl over everything they had, and all apparent money that had been put into making it the way it was. And this girl ran.

Some part of him was puzzled, and longed to see her again.

* * *

The address in her hand was flung on the damp earth long ago. The clean white heels had been broken and had been left long forsaken in the underbrush. The white, spaghetti-strapped summer dress, which had been the best one she owned, had been covered with leaves and dried mud, which she didn't care enough to brush off. Her feet had been cut, bloodied and stained with dirt, not that she cared.

She hadn't gone home. To see the look on her father's face when she revealed that she hadn't gotten that job that might just help them, the look of quiet reassurance mixed with disappointment, it was something that she could not do. Perhaps she would sleep in the forest, she thought fleetingly as she ran past trees of every kind in the forest outside of the mansion.

The rain had started to fall. First starting as a light sprinkling and then growing to form a roll of thunder and a thick downpouring of water, she had opted to go in the forest before she had become soaked to the bone. She had come into the forest to collect herself, and to make some serious decisions.

Forcing other thoughts down, she had come to the conclusion that she had just been overwhelmed by the reality of it all and would indeed go back. It had to be what she wanted, because it was what her family wanted.

Gazzy had been forced to quit his private school. She knew he'd been happy, but he'd never complained, whereas she'd whined and stamped her foot as much as she possibly could until she'd just given up.

Iggy was off to college in the fall. Or, he was supposed to be. But he wouldn't even get there if they didn't have the money to pay for it. Forget being born blind, he didn't need this, too. He had wanted to be a doctor. A surgeon, even. So much for limitations.

Slumping against the tree, she realized it was too late –at least by human standards- to be out like this, considering that her last day of school and graduation was going to be held tomorrow, and her father would be worried, to say the least. Picking herself up and giving one last glance in the mansion's direction, she took off running.

* * *

Jeb Bachelder looked up from the newspaper he had been reading when the door to the small house flew open to reveal his daughter standing there in a torn dress and bare feet. Her hair hung limp and wet around her shoulders, and a dejected look was in her eyes. Seeing his questioning look, she admitted that she had gotten the job, and had walked upstairs, leaving him alone once again.

He wasn't on the best terms with his only daughter. She had tortured him for uprooting her, despite the fact that a tragedy had happened and that he had lost his job. To be honest, he missed her, just like he missed her mother, but he wouldn't let her think that. For God's sake, she had even changed her last name to be different from his. She clearly wanted nothing to do with him.

Before it had happened, she'd been a perfect little girl, daddy's little girl, the one who had sat on his lap for stories and who, unlike his boys, hadn't refused to go camping and on fishing trips. She had made being a parent worth it. And now, nothing.

She should be grateful to even live in a house. This was another reason that they didn't have enough money for Iggy to go to college. Max had insisted that they live in a house and not an apartment. If it was just Jeb on his own, he would be living in a box on the streets. But perfect Max just couldn't have that. So Iggy most likely would remain in poverty for the rest of his life.

They weren't all lucky enough to have wings.

* * *

Those were the sequence of events leading up to what would ultimately change her life. She may not have wished for it, but there it was. It could not be undone, and it could not be taken back. The next day, after the last part of her life was done, a new part started with that knock on the door of that unfamiliar mansion.

And so it began.

* * *

**First, a big thank you to everyone who voted on the poll for this story's pairing. It means a lot. **

**Secondly, this is purely a Fax story, but I may incorporate other pairings, too. It depends on how hard you beg. xD No, just kidding. But if you ask for it, I'll probably do it. If you're an author, you know how much reviews mean. So please, take one minute and click the button at the bottom of the screen. Anyone who does so gets an internet cookie. ^o^ **

**Third, this story is AU. Max and Fang are the only ones with wings and powers, in a few chapters you'll see why. The age ranges are also different, so that Iggy is older than Max and Fang, who are only a year older than Nudge rather than three. Gazzy is also only one year older than Angel, and Gazzy and Angel are not related in this story. There are two families. Nudge and Angel belong to Fang's, and Gazzy and Iggy belong to Max's. **

**If you didn't catch on, Max is incredibly poor because of the "tragedy" and her father's lost job, while Fang is extremely rich.**

**Enjoy this new story. **

**~Rachel**


	2. Chapter 1

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 1 | **by: Rachel // Chapter posted May 9th, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG // 3,500 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 | Brigid - 15 // The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or wil anything and everything come between them?**

_The idea for this story is my own and no one else's. Everything else belongs to James Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews. _The alarm clock beeped noisily on the table, sitting about five minutes before a hand reached over and slapped it off. Max groaned groggily as she made her way off the bed, which she was previously sprawled on, contentedly asleep.

* * *

Six-thirty in the morning. Just her luck on a summer day.

She yelped as she realized she was five minutes late, five minutes she couldn't afford to lose if she wanted to get there on time. Throwing the covers off and running blindly to what should have been the door, she tripped and fell upon boxes, furniture and trash.

She had forgotten that now, the bed was basically her room, and that the rest was crammed with the stuff she'd tried to bring. For example, if she wanted to use her homework desk, she couldn't just walk there. She'd have to crawl carefully over the bed without banging her head on the ceiling, which was as low as her self-esteem.

Picking herself up and dusting off, she grabbed a towel from the cabinet outside and made her way to her still smaller bathroom, where she hurried through the shower of lukewarm water and put on all the makeup she could afford –not much-.

Wrapping a towel about herself as she scrambled back into her room, she rummaged through boxes, finding a pair of her good jeans and some converse that she had obtained before they had come to these conditions. Throwing on a T-shirt and a ponytail, she sprinted upstairs. It wasn't like it would matter. She would have to change into her uniform in a half hour.

She just had to get to the job. Even though it had been a week since she had officially started, if she was late, even once, the job went to someone else. The warden had made that clear.

Flinging on a jacket and running into the kitchen, her eyes scanned for the Frosted Flakes and a bowl. "They're in the boxes, still," a voice said from the "living" room.

Max jumped at the voice and peered through the door. She should have known. As usual, Jeb was sitting on what looked to be the couch, but when it was covered in plastic wrap you just couldn't tell. Drinking coffee and reading the newspaper, he seemed to be adjusting just fine.

"Then what am I supposed to eat?" she yelped. "I have to leave in ten minutes!"

"Keep your voice down," he hissed. "Iggy and Gazzy are still trying to sleep."

"Not anymore," Gazzy slumped into the room. "Take a break from hating each other, will you?" he asked. Jeb recoiled as if slapped. "I mean, come on. It's summer. I just want to sleep," he complained.

"There's always tomorrow," Iggy sighed as he came into the room as well, already dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. "For you."

"What do you mean?" she snorted. "You've been off of school for a year. You don't have anything to do." _I'm the one doing everything, making all the money, _for _you,_ her eyes said. If only he could see them.

"I…I got a job," he grimaced.

"Who hires a blind guy?" asked Gazzy curiously.

"The gas station down the street," Iggy answered, reaching into the boxes and grabbing a box of Cheerios. He reached in the fridge, took out the milk and took a swig of both the Cheerios and milk, grimacing afterward. "Uh, Dad, you might wanna buy some new milk."

"I will," Jeb answered in a bored tone of voice, like they'd been through this before. And they had.

"If you can even afford more milk," Max muttered under her breath.

"Look, Max, I'm doing the best I can!" he shouted, standing up from the couch. Max stood, unflinching, while he glared. "I've been trying to find a job! It's just hard, alright?"

"So, let me get something straight," she raised an eyebrow. "It's easy for a seventeen year old girl to get a job, and now it's automatically harder for you, a doctor, to find a new job?"

"There are too many people in my profession," he said simply, the rage was gone and replaced with weariness. "Get going. Just go."

She glared, grabbed a handful of Cheerios out of Iggy's box and made for the door.

"Call when you're coming home," he waved her out, then winced. They had cancelled her cell phone long ago because it was too much.

"We don't have the phones set up yet," she said tiredly, and walked out the door.

* * *

Max was greeted at the door of the mansion by none other than Brigid Dwyer, the one who had shown her around a week ago on her first day. The perky, fifteen year old pig-tailed blonde always seemed to be cheerful, something Max was all too quick to avoid.

"Hi, Max! Guess what? It's your eighth day here! That means a week! What do you wanna do today, since it's your week-a-versary? On _my _week-a-versaries I make cupcakes. I've had thirty-six of them! Maybe you could make cakes, or pancakes, do you like pancakes? I like pancakes, and cupcakes, really any kind of cake, and-"

"Brigid!" Max yelled. "Not this early in the morning, please!" she groaned. The sun had just barely started coming up. All she really wanted to do was go back to sleep. She might consider hiding in the house's enormous towel cupboard and taking a nap…

"I'm…sorry, Max," Brigid said, her eyes starting to water. "I didn't mean to bother you. I'll just go," she sniffled, turning around.

Max rolled her eyes. _Great. This is all I need. Little Miss Bipolar and her mood swings. _"Brigid, I'm sorry. You can bake something…if you want to..." _Come to think of it, I could use something to eat, a handful of Cheerios doesn't exactly do it for me…_

"Really?" Brigid's eyes lit up as she turned around. "Oh, you mean it, Max?" she walked up and threw her arms around her. "I'll make you a cross between a cupcake and a pancake! It'll…It'll be a cupcake in the _shape _of a pancake! How do you feel about fruit on top? Should I put _strawberries _or _cherries _on top, Max?"

"Aaah! Surprise me!" Max squirmed under Brigid's death grip, then took a deep breath as she was released, and Brigid skipped away, yelling, "I just know we're going to be best friends, Max!"

Max snorted. That was certainly likely. Brigid was one of the richest servants there. That was to say, _everyone, _even the servants, were rich here. Everyone but Max. They all worked there because it was "fun". Max worked there to earn money for Iggy's education.

As she quickly walked away from Brigid to the flower vase, with fresh flowers to replace the old ones, she heard running mixed with the quiet chatter of the household, and as the footsteps got louder, she knew that they were small.

A young girl, no older than twelve, maybe thirteen, sprinted up the stairs from the basement, where even Max knew that the children were not allowed to play in. The girl was breathing heavily as her feet pounded against the hardwood floors of the mansion. "Help!" she cried, but the household completely ignored her, which was unexpected, because they were violating a direct order.

Not really wanting to get fired that day, Max ran over to the girl. She immediately recognized her as Angel, the youngest daughter of the house. "Will you help me?" Angel panted. "I was playing in the basement and there was a snake down there as big as my head! My mom doesn't like snakes…you can't tell her I was down there!" she pleaded.

"Sure," Max raised an eyebrow. "I'm not scared of a snake."

Her eyes widened in hero worship. "But it's _huge!_ And I asked Brigid, and she said she hated snakes!" She sighed. "You don't have to help me. I won't get you fired."

"No, no, I want to help you," Max replied, even though ulterior motives were swimming through her head. "Show me the snake."

Angel smiled brightly and grabbed her hand, tugging her down the stairs and into the basement. The basement was just as large as the upstairs, but less extravagant. There were pieces of furniture with sheets over them everywhere.

Angel led Max past every one until they got to the corner. There, squirming and trying to run, was a…garden snake.

"That little thing?" Max asked, puzzled. "He's harmless! He couldn't hurt you or anything else. I bet if he bet you, it wouldn't even hurt," she joked. Nevertheless, she picked up the snake.

"W-what are you doing with it?" Angel asked nervously. "Don't touch him!"

"Why not?"

"Because you might hurt him!" Angel wailed. "His name is Squiggles!"

Max blinked. "I'm not hurting him," She explained. "I'm going to put him outside where he belongs."

"Oh. Well, go ahead. Just don't hurt him," she clarified. "Thanks, um, what's your name?"

"Max."

"Oh. Well, hi, Max! I'm Angel. Like, duh. I'm thirteen," she smiled, well, angelically at me. "How old are you?"

"Seventeen."

"Cool, you're the same age as Fang! He's my brother. Have you met him?"

"No."

"You don't talk much, you know? Well, be sure you meet him. See you later!" she hollered, giggling, as she ran away and up the stairs.

What Max really wanted to do was just drop the snake and go. Yet she carried it upstairs, through the front door and dropped it in the garden. She found a watering can and started sprinkling it over the entire garden.

"I see you've met Angel," said a voice.

Her head snapped up. Her eyes widened as she saw a boy suddenly become visible and peel himself off of the wall. It was like he'd been camouflaged. Seeing her startled expression, he continued. "Just, I recognized Squiggles," he grinned.

"Has Angel been hiding him?" She finally found her voice. But you couldn't really blame her. The boy in front of her was tall, only slightly shorter than Iggy, with olive skin and jet-black hair. Clad in everything black, a black jacket, black T-shirt, black skinny jeans and black converse, he was certainly the only 'emo boy' that Max had ever seen.

"Oh, yeah. She has lots of pets. Last week we found a cat under her bed, before that it was a frog in her closet, and I think she even has a squirrel somewhere in there."

"So, um, why was she afraid to touch a snake?"

"Beats me. It's probably because she didn't have any tweezers."

Max walked around to the other flowers with the watering can. Extremely self-conscious, she realized that the maid's outfits were far too short. "Um, can I ask you a question?"

"Only if I can ask you to dinner," he said jokingly.

"Very funny," she said skeptically. "Seriously, though, how did you just appear like that?"

His eyes darkened, if that was possible. "I guess I'm just good at sneaking up on people," he said, then brightened –a little- and held out his hand. "I'm Fang, by the way."

"Max," she said, taking it. "Wait, what? Does your mom own this house?"

"Yeah," he answered slowly. "Why did you think I was here?"

"Ah, just, well, you…you don't look like a rich kid. Where's your geeky little shirt and tie?"

In all seriousness, he answered, "I'm wearing an invisible tie."

A moment later, Brigid came running out of the house. "Max, I made your cupcake-pancake thing! Do you want sprinkles on it? I put strawberries on it if that's alright with-" she noticed Fang and got a particular spark in her eye.

"Hey, baby," she said, and walked up to him.

"Oh, hi," he said emotionlessly. But then, he was emotionless. Max couldn't understand why her heart fell when he wrapped his arm around Brigid and gave her a light peck on the lips. "Max, this is my girlfriend, Brigid," he announced.

"We've met," she answered. I realized then that I hadn't let go of his hand yet.

"Anyway, today is Max's week-a-versary, so I made her a pancake-cupcake thing! Come on, Max!" And she grabbed her arm without further ado and dragged her inside.

Brigid seemed thoughtful as they made their way to the kitchen. "Just out of curiosity, not that I'm jealous or anything, why were you talking to him just now?"

_Man, this one is dense. She's making us blondes look bad. _

"I was dropping a snake outside for Angel and he was just standing there."

"Oh, that's a relief. I thought he liked you and you liked him –you know we're dating behind his mom's back, you won't tell, right?- and, well, not that I was jealous or anything, but-"

"Brigid!" she exclaimed. "I understand. And I won't tell."

Even if I had seen the girl with the caramel skin watching us from the pantry, I wouldn't have stopped her.

"Thanks!" she smiled brightly. "Now, I present to you…your week-a-versary cake!" What Max found herself looking at was a mistake against nature. There sat a half-burnt chocolate lump of bubbling goop, with some strawberries sprinkled on top and a frosting smiley face. Max grimaced inside.

"What are you waiting for, dig in!" she squealed, and left Max alone with it as she marched off. Quickly she took the cake and shoved it in the trash can.

It was late afternoon by the time she had finished her duties upstairs. She had made the beds of the entire family, done Angel's laundry and folded it neatly in her dresser –which was enormous-, swept the floors three times over and dusted everything under the sun.

Suddenly and without warning, another servant had come to her and said that she had received a call from someone named 'Iggy'. Max ran to pick up the phone, wondering how he got her work phone, but it wasn't important. If Iggy wasted money on a pay phone, something had to be up.

"Ig?" she answered nervously as she picked up the phone. "Iggy, are you okay?"

"No," he croaked from the other end. "Max, the gas station is a dump. It's filthy, run down, and in the city. And today, when I came into work, people were stealing things because I couldn't see them."

"Oh, Iggy," she began.

"No, Max! You don't understand. After that, a guy came in, and he couldn't see that I was blind. So he…he told me to give him the money in the cash register. And I couldn't see him, so…I laughed at him." His voice became choked. "And then he…he shot me, Max."

The phone fell from her hand, clattering loudly onto the floor. By the time Iggy called Max's name into the receiver, she was already gone.

She ran for her life, out of the house and down the enormous driveway. She ran down the street, then cut through the sidewalk into the forest. Zipping past trees and bushes, tripping on everything, and still in her maid's outfit, the brambles cut her legs and arms, but she didn't care.

She almost stumbled and fell as a pair of invisible arms wrapped around her, and then she could see everything, and more importantly, she could see him. "Max," Fang whispered, wiping the tears out of her eyes with his thumb. "You have to get back…they're gonna fire you."

"Look," she sobbed, murder in her eyes. "My brother's just been shot, and it's all my fault."

"How is him getting shot your fault?" Fang asked, bewildered. "Look, come back. You need this job."

Her eyes widened as she stared at him. "Who are you to pry into my personal life, you creep?" she asked. "Yes, I'm a dirt poor girl from a dirt poor family, and let's just say we wouldn't be poor if I hadn't been stupid and changed everything! So for God's sake, let me go! I don't care if I never come back!"

"Just stay, let me help you," he started, but she was running out of time. So without further ado, she spit, full in his face, making him let go. By the time he cleaned his face and looked up, she was long gone, a shadow running down the road.

* * *

Fang fell face forward into the tree. Ever since he had first seen her, over a week ago, he had been intrigued by her. Now that he had finally met her, she was hurting, and yet she despised him with all that she had. And he liked her and wanted to help her.

Right when he had been talking to her, Brigid had gotten in the way, as usual. It was more something she decided than anything else; that she would be his girlfriend. She usually chased away every girlfriend he had.

It didn't make any difference with Max. Something about her aura demanded that she deserved something and someone better than him. Something about her made him want to give every penny he had to her, and then some. Something about the light in her eyes told him that she was worth something, even if she was poor.

Maybe some part of him did care about Max. She was certainly interesting to him. The other part of him cared about Brigid, and not hurting her feelings. They had been friends since they were younger, and even he knew that she only accepted the job because of him. There was a time when he had actually loved Brigid.

He didn't know if it was now. Max was now, and she hated him. He just couldn't win, could he?

He stared after her until she became a blur in the distance, then faded out into invisibility, making his way home again.

* * *

Max burst through the double doors of the hospital, breathing heavily and panting, but that didn't slow her down one bit. She ran as fast as she possibly could right past the front desk and into the hallway, running down shouting.

"Iggy? Iggy!" she screamed. "Iggy, are you in there? Gazzy? _Dad?_"

"Shut up out there!" hollered an old man.

"You can shove it, or you'll be on the respirator sooner than you can think, you old geezer!" she screamed.

"Max," she heard Iggy's voice, but just weakly. She flew into the hospital room and there he was, lying on the bed, his shoulder completely bandaged. She gave a sigh of relief, seeing that they'd missed his heart. "Hey, Ig," she said. "You almost gave me a heart attack."

"Well, I do have that effect on the ladies," he said. I slapped him playfully.

"I was in the gas station too," Gazzy piped up. "The guy shot the window and the glass flew at my arm. I had to get stitches," he said proudly, showing me the 'scars'.

"Well, aren't you the brave one?" Jeb asked dryly.

They spent hours like that in the hotel room. Gazzy left and brought back Monopoly, which they set up on the hospital bed and let Iggy play with them. Max was always the car, Gazzy the thimble, Jeb the hat and Iggy the ship thing. They played until they were sick of it. She lost every time; Jeb won four times and Iggy won twice.

It was silenced when the nurse slipped in with a cell phone. "Is there a Maximum Bachelder here?" she asked.

"Maximum Ride," Max answered with authority. "Gimme the phone."

She walked into the hall. "Hello?" she answered. She felt a familiar happiness wash through her as JJ's voice came through the end of the phone.

"Max!" JJ said. She sounded happy but not excited, like there was something pressing on her mind. "Listen, it's good to hear your voice."

"You too!" Max said excitedly. "My job and new school are horrible, it feels so wrong not having my best friend here. Actually, I don't really have any friends here, just this dumb blonde who keeps stalking me."

"I know how that goes," said JJ playfully. "Max…I need to talk to you."

"Sure, what about?"

"Well…remember your old boyfriend…Sam?"

"Sure. What about him?"

"Well…a couple weeks after you left…well…let's just say…we're going out now."

Max remained silent, because she just couldn't find the will to talk anymore. She didn't know why she'd expected Sam to stay single after she left. But hearing that her best friends were together and she was alone…it was too much.

"Max, you there?"

Max knew JJ had good intensions, and that Sam was a great guy. How could you not love him? But somehow, her first instinct was to yell at JJ for what a bitch she had been.

"Max, are you okay with it?"

She swallowed, hard, and waved goodbye to her sanity. "Yeah, you guys would be great together. Plus, I already have a new boyfriend."

"That's great, Max. Call ya later."

"Sure." She pressed end. There was no way JJ was ever calling her later.

_Plus, I already have a new boyfriend. _

Max's thoughts immediately flashed to the mysterious, dark boy she had only just met.

* * *

**Okay. So the actual story was written a day or two before I put it up, so it was torture waiting for reviews. You all owe me for putting up the prologue /and/ chapter one all in one day. How's about you thank me in reviews, huh? *wink wink nudge nudge* **

**Not to mention that this was put up on the ninth, two hours early because I am FREAKING TIRED. I. AM. GOING. TO. _SLEEP. _End of story.**

**Oh, and I'm slowly bringing in all of the characters. Total and Nudge aren't here yet, I apologize. Lissa's not here yet? No biggie. Dylan gone? He'll be coming. All you guys have to do is keep reading. **

**Also, if you voted on the poll for this story, you'll know that it was just to see if people actually cared what I write. Turns out they do! And I feel so happy. But if you just want to give me a request for a story, that's fine. Unless it involves Fang, Dylan, eskimos, sea otters, and a swirly slide. Weird dream I had last night. PLEASE DON'T ASK. **

**~Rachel**


	3. Chapter 2

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 2 **|by: Rachel / Chapter posted May 21, 2010

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,680 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 / The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them?**

_The idea for this story is mine and no one else's. Everything else belongs to James Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

The next day hadn't proven itself to have been any better, in her humble opinion. Jeb had been making excuses for their new circumstances, saying that it wasn't that bad and they would get used to it. It would all end up being better for everyone. So far, nothing like that had happened, and she was running out of time before her sanity gave out.

"You can't grumble everyday," Jeb pointed out irritably as once again, his daughter trudged upstairs, darkening everyone's good day. His son was just starting to heal from being shot, even though it was nothing serious, and his other son was having a tough time putting up with Max's constant outbursts and mood swings.

"Watch me," she hissed as she reached to get her jacket and yanked the front door open.

"You have to eat," he said as he got off the couch and walked to the kitchen.

Max rolled her eyes. "Why should I eat here? You can't even afford breakfast cereal."

"It'll throw you off for the rest of the day," he said with his eyes closed, trying to be patient. It was only a matter of time before she drove him insane with her snide comments and biting tone of voice.

"I'll grab something at work, she said, almost halfway out the door now.

"Max, wait," he said, walking over to yank her arm away from the door.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" her eyes narrowed as she ripped her arm away.

"We're going to talk," he snarled, finally unraveling after months of abuse. "Sit."

She raised an eyebrow. "Dad, you really wanna have it out right before school?"

"Look, it would really help me out if you weren't so judgmental. It's not like we don't have money for food, alright? You're totally exaggerating that. The fact is, I'm a single father trying to raise three teenage kids, and it's hard. I don't have the time to go to the supermarket or anything, because I'm trying to find a _job._"  
"Why, you still feel the need to get up off your ass after forcing your daughter, your seventeen year old daughter with a life, to get a job _for _you, a grown man? Does that mean I outdo you, Dad? That I'm making more money than a doctor? And yes, I know, there "aren't enough people in your profession" and all, I hear it all the time."

"Do you _want _your brother to go to college?" he shouted. "Because it's fine if you don't. If you're more interested in your fun now than his future later, there won't be any consequences. Think, Max! This is real life! You don't have time to play the bratty teenager part! Our lives are a little bit more complicated than that!"

"You remind me everyday," she hissed. "Did you ever think that it's been traumatic for me too? Ever since…God. Don't even remind me. Just remember that it was hard for me, too."

"You remind _me _everyday," he said coldly. "This isn't about you individually!"

"Oh, save it! I don't have time for you and your controlling, preachy crap. You have absolutely no room to criticize! Now if you don't mind, I'm off to work, _again, _because of you."

She heard Iggy and Gazzy shuffling about in their rooms, and knew it was time to leave, before they caught her and joined in the argument.

Without further ado, she grabbed her purse off the doorknob and flung herself out into the early-morning air. But instead of rushing down the driveway like she usually did, she hid behind the closed door and listened.

It didn't feel like she didn't care about her father anymore. And she wanted more than anything for it to be alright, so she could stop being angry at him like she always was lately. Some part of her knew that it wasn't his fault that the job had fallen through. Even if that wasn't the big tragedy, it was close enough.

Now was the part when Iggy would come into the room and just know what was wrong. She heard his quiet footsteps as he approached his father. Max knew the scene too well.

"You don't have to be hard on her," Iggy said. Reading his father's outraged expression, he rushed on, "I know she's being a little brat, but she's taken it a lot harder than any of us. And I know that she still loves you."

Iggy was the protective older brother that even Max knew would always side with her. If she committed a murder, Iggy would stand in the courtroom listing things the victim could have done to piss Max off. Iggy thought Max didn't notice it. But she was as grateful as hell that someone was on her side.

Gazzy, on the other hand, was a different story. He was the younger brother that had always had his fights with Max, the sister who had tortured him all through his childhood. He loved his father through it all, and was on the opposite side of the war. Max shrugged it off most of the time. Gazzy had no idea how much she missed him.

She didn't stay long enough to hear the rest of the argument that was sure to follow. Gazzy would get involved and yell at Iggy, claiming that Max was a spoiled kid who just had to face up to reality, just like he always did. But she had a job to go to, at any rate.

She didn't know why she bothered to dress up. She was only wearing the outfit she had on for a few minutes before she put on that cosplay-ish maid uniform. Yet, in the back of her mind, the only place that she even dared to blush, thoughts of the dark one, Fang, were swimming around. He was…interesting. And interested in her, even though she didn't quite know it.

* * *

_Crap, crap, crap! She'll kill me if I don't get in on time! I already got scolded once for it…_

Max raced to the edge of the estate and breathed a sigh of relief. The warden herself was preoccupied with a couple other people who had done something wrong. Maybe there was time to sneak around and get in on time without being seen.

As she tiptoed closer to the house, being careful to keep to the back of the 'warden', in case she had eyes in the back of her head like the rumors all suggested, she realized that the two figures that were obviously being scolded were in fact very familiar-looking…

Her eyes widened so much that it felt they were going to pop out of their sockets. The pair of guilty-looking teens that were being scolded was…Brigid and Fang? They were already drawing a crowd. She skipped ahead to get behind them. She didn't want to be late, but she sure wasn't going to miss anything.

Brigid had tears in her eyes and was biting her lip, her hands folded as she struggled to keep it together. Fang couldn't have looked more relaxed. One eyebrow was raised, as if daring anyone to mess with him. His mother wasn't afraid in the least.

"I can't believe this has happened again. Brigid, I warned you months ago to stay away from him. I have absolutely nothing against Fang dating, but I have made it clear that I hired you professionally as a maid in my house, not to serve as entertainment to my son. I am incredibly disappointed in you both."

A tear slipped from Brigid's eye, which she quickly wiped away. Max rolled her eyes. _Honestly, what is it with girls and their boyfriends? It's like he's her last lifeline. It's pathetic. _

"You have worked here for more than half a year, Brigid. It turns out that half of that time, you were lying and going behind my back. You are never to come here again, and you'll have one day to return your uniform. You two not allowed to see each other from this point on. Fang, I suggest you find a new pet," she smirked.

Fang couldn't help but grin, which was an odd effect, because it seemed unnatural for him. Just the way he was showing his teeth was enough to make Max shiver. In a good or bad way, she would never know.

Max wasn't the only one who had seen it. One sideways glance of Brigid's was all it took to send her running off the property, the tears exploding and the sobs not ending until she was as far away as she could get from Fang.

_How could he be so cruel? I mean, it is Brigid, but how could he be so heartless? He could have at least acted depressed. _

The crowd of people quickly dispersed quickly as soon as it was over. The boss was in an irritable mood, and no one was in the mood to get fired that day. Max made her way inside first and changed into her uniform before anyone noticed anything strange.

Busying herself with dusting a vase, she didn't hear the quiet footsteps as he crept up behind her.

"Hey," said Fang, and Max almost jumped out of her skin, cringing. She hadn't expected this, although she should have. "I noticed you watching that back there. Enjoy the show?"

She felt a blush creep up her cheeks, and covered it up with weak anger. "You're horrible. How could you break her heart like that? She was your girlfriend! Is that all she was to you, some toy you could play around with until you moved on to the next girl in your rich boy life?"

He recoiled, then stood over her, towering over a head taller as usual. He seemed a hundred feet tall. "Since when did you become the expert on my personal life? In case you forgot, I'm the one who knows all about you now. You're incredibly easy to read. So what makes you think you know anything? For your information, I was never her boyfriend, it was a fantasy of hers. I'm tired of letting people down easy. Any more interrogations?"

"The point is, she was an honest girl with good intentions, who obviously liked you a lot. So why did you have to be such a jerk?" she said, mustering up the last of her courage and standing up on her tiptoes. Still, the top of her head was only up to his nose.

"I could get you fired for this," he whispered in her ear. "How would you like that? I bet your brother would be awfully disappointed at not being able to go to college…" he trailed off smugly.

"How do you know about me?" she whirled on him. "How do you know everything about my personal life?"

"It's my job to know," he declared. "I know everything about all of our servants here. You see Jess over there?" he pointed to a middle-aged maid a few feet away. "She's cheating on her husband with his brother. And over there, our butler, Tim? He has cancer. He only has a few months to live."

"What do you want from me?" she gave an exasperated sigh.

"Apologize," he said simply.

"What?" she asked in disbelief.

"Apologize," he repeated. "Or else you lose your job," he said mischievously.

"I…you…" she stuttered.

"I'm waiting."

She gave a nervous glance around the area. Most of the maids had scattered and Tim was nowhere to be found. She took a deep breath. "Fang…I'm…sorry…that I assumed you were a cruel and heartless bastard."

"Thank you," he beamed. Again, the eeriness of it all made her shudder. "Catch ya later," he said with a wink, walking away, leaving her alone.

"Finally," Max breathed a sigh as she went back to her work. Not that a feather duster was exactly hard work, but she figured she deserved at least some break after being terrorized by the dark boy.

She jumped for the second time that day when she heard another voice. "Thank God, I thought he would never leave." A young girl peeled herself from the wall, coming out of the shadows where she blended. Her black hair and caramel skin were camouflaged in the shadows, making it impossible for even Fang to see her the first time.

"Sorry," she grinned, noticing Max's reaction. She shook her head until words came to her mouth.

"W-Who are you? Do you people have to keep sneaking up on me?"

She smiled again. "With all due respect, I wasn't trying to sneak up on you. And I'm Fang's…sister, I guess. Adopted of course," she rolled her eyes, gesturing to her skin color. "My name's Nudge."

"So, did you see what just happened?" Max asked uncomfortably. _This girl seems kind of creepy. Even if she isn't Fang's sister, they sure are from the same family. _

"Oh, yeah. Well, actually, it's sort of my fault that it happened."

"You told him where I was hiding?" Max asked, murderous rage in her brown eyes.

"No, no!" She held her hands up in defense. "I was the one who told my mom about Fang and Brigid."

"What?" Max almost shouted, leaping for Nudge's shirt collar. "What have you done? Why would you do something like that? I don't like her much either, but she has feelings just like everyone else!"

"It was against the rules," Nudge said simply. "You're not supposed to date anyone here that you work for or who works for you. No boss/servant relationships. Yet, I seem to like you a lot. I've been watching you."

"What are you saying?" Max had backed into a corner. _Someone come around the corner, please…_

"I'm saying you might be good for Fang. Get him to be more mature and less of a hothead. He thinks you're interesting, or else he wouldn't talk to you."

"I have a boyfriend," Max lied easily.

"No, you don't!" Nudge chirped. "You forget that we know everything about you. You dumped your boyfriend the day you left to move here. Try to tell Fang anything different and I'll tell him, too, because he didn't bother to find out. Yet."

"I'm not going to be set up with some conceited, spoiled prince who doesn't have any clue about life outside his stupid mansion!" she seethed. "I'll choose who I go out with, or don't go out with, or even choose to fall in love with!" Nudge saw that she couldn't keep the blush off her face.

"You think you're a really good liar, don't you, Max?" Nudge asked playfully. "Well, you really suck at it. Relax. I'm a girl, too. I won't tell that idiot anything, okay?"

Max watched her curiously as she disappeared.

* * *

"But you like her, right?" Angel questioned as she sat next to Fang on his bed, where he was spread-eagled and bouncing a ball off the ceiling.

"Maybe." He rolled his eyes, not wanting to admit anything just yet. God knew Angel had had her fair share of crushes, and even a few boyfriends, that he'd lorded over her head for weeks on end, and the last thing he needed was for her to torture him over this one girl.

It probably wouldn't turn into anything much. After all, he didn't know how he would pull it off. If he really cared about her, it would be difficult to hide it from his mother.

"The day I confide in you about a crush is the day I die," he resolved.

"So it is a crush!" she sang victoriously.

He gaped at her, causing the ball to spring back from the ceiling and hit him squarely in the face. "Shit," he mumbled. Rubber hurt sometimes, he thought as he grabbed a tissue for his now bleeding nose. "I didn't say that!"

"Yes you did!" she shouted. "Fang, this is great! I mean, it's too bad you always fall in love with your maids, the last time you liked someone was Lissa about a year ago. Then, she got fired, too, though," she added as an afterthought.

"I can't do anything about it," he said stubbornly. "Every one of them got fired, and I always got caught. But it's different with her. She needs the money we're paying her more than anything else in the world, Angel, or her family will never go back to normal. I can't take that away from her. I can't."

"So, don't get caught," Angel said. Fang rolled his eyes. "No, seriously," she went on. "Lissa and Brigid were stupid, Fang. They just were. I know you didn't even love Brigid, but they weren't nearly as smart as Max is. You wouldn't get caught."

"You're forgetting something," he answered wryly.

"Oh, yeah, your IQ," Angel winced.

"I was talking about the fact that the woman has eyes in the back of her head," he growled over Angel's laughter.

* * *

"I'm off!" Max announced to the kitchen staff as she shoved her maid's uniform in her single cubbyhole. They grinned at her, the new girl who was still so eager to leave. She swiped a tart off one of the trays and walked out the front cautiously, making sure Fang was nowhere to be seen.

She strained her eyes and saw a beat-up pickup at the end of the driveway, and Iggy in the driver's seat. Gazzy was with him, of course. Iggy could drive if Gazzy gave him directions, Max remembered. He jumped out of the truck and grinned when he saw her. "Hey, Ig," she said when she got to him. She dropped half a tart into his hand and he beamed down at her. "Have fun?" he taunted.

"Max!" shouted one of the servants. "We're working another half hour today! Get in here before you're fired!"

"Shit," cursed Max before stuffing her half of the tart down her throat and running back to join the others. "Oh, Ig, you can wait inside if you want!" she hollered. A reluctant Iggy followed her inside and tried to make himself at home. He knew Gazzy was still in the truck with his Nintendo DS.

Max was gone. She knew better than to leave him where he couldn't see anything. This was a new place, after all. He could see better in their apartment back home, and it had only been a few weeks. The maids seemed oblivious to his blindness, and there was no one to help him.

Slowly, he felt what might have been a couch. He hoped it was as he sat down on it. He was proud of himself for even making it this far. He had come inside, and he had sat on a couch. Well, jolly good for him.

"Are you really…blind?" came a small voice. He nodded his head swiftly. Whoever it was sounded like they had a mildly pretty voice, a delicate and privileged voice. He had learned how to tell a lot about a person from the way their voice sounded.

"Well, I've never met a blind person before," the voice chattered. "Is it very hard? It must be lonely, not being able to see anything in the world. Do you do it all alone? Is there no one to help you, like a maid or anything? Do you have a maid?"

"Yeah, like I could afford a maid," he rolled his eyes. "Maybe this'll clear it all up. Max Bachelder is my sister. Do you know her?"

"Yeah, she works for us!" the voice piped up. "She's really nice! Wait, you guys are poor, aren't you? Oh, God, I'm sorry! Do you get offended when people call you poor? Even if you are it must feel bad…oh, am I making you feel worse? I-"

"Hey, it's okay," he answered with a smile. "I'm kind of used to it."

Who was the girl with this voice? He wished he could see her, even once. But he was used to that. He'd had a girlfriend where he had been, too.

_What am I doing? I _have _a girlfriend! Ella said she'd wait until I went to college, then she'd follow me! She's waited to go to college because of me! What am I doing with this girl now? _

"Um, hey….this might be embarrassing," he began, "but, um, can I feel your face? I…I get to know what people look like that way."

There was a slight pause, and then the chattering started up again. "Uh, sure! Eh, feel my face…."

"Iggy," he answered, and moved his hands to her face. She had smooth skin and a small nose, with a high forehead and full, pouty lips complete with big eyes. "Wow…you have a really pretty face."

_God, Iggy, what are you saying? _Ella _has a pretty face, not this random girl that you just met! Get it together before you end up doing something really stupid! _

"I'm Nudge," she giggled. "And you're kind of cute, Iggy." She blushed scarlet. _What are you doing, Nudge? He'd never be interested in a girl like you! Just because you're rich doesn't mean anything. He's…different, and amazing and incredible. _

"Anyhow," she continued, "if you're going to pick Max up again sometime, I'll…I'll be here…" she finished awkwardly. She was glad he was blind, so he couldn't see how stupid she looked.

"Sounds…good," he continued uneasily, still thinking of Ella.

"Hey, Ig, time to go," Max said. Had it been a half hour already? He didn't know, but he was in no hurry to go. "Oh, hey, Nudge," Max smiled. "I see you've met my brother. Come on, Ig," she said, grabbing his hand and leading him away. Nudge watched him go.

"She's nice, right?" asked Max inquisitively. Iggy sighed. If only she knew how nice.

The ride home was spent in silence. Gazzy didn't ask questions and Iggy didn't tell them anything, but the entire ride home he was wondering just who exactly that amazing girl was, and when he would see her again, if ever.

* * *

* * *

**In the last chapter I made a few mistakes with the point of view. I'm so used to writing stories where I'm writing in first person, this is really new for me. I'm trying to get used to the third person, so just work with me until I get the hang of it, okay? **

**I don't update any single story very often because I have a lot to update. So if you want to, read my stories all at once to make it less of a wait for updates. I update as much as I can, but I have a lot of stuff going on right now. **

**When Jeb says that there are a lot of people in his profession so he can't find an easy job, this is something going on in my life right now. My mom quit her job to take care of my family, but now she needs to go back to work for lack of money. She's trying to find a job, but it's been hard to find one in the state, or even out. Only, I hope I havn't been acting like Max at all, she's a little brat right now xD **

**Thanks so much for reading. As always, review~!**

**~Rachel**


	4. Chapter 3

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 3 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted June 4, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,902 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 / The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them?**

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to James Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money writing this story, I simply write for reviews. _

* * *

Surprisingly, there wasn't any conflict the next morning. Jeb was too worn out trying to deal with her moods, and she didn't want to see him at all. He wasn't around the house, but she sure wasn't complaining and she wasn't going to look for him. She skipped breakfast and ran out the door, not bothering to say good morning to Iggy or Gazzy. She ran to the bus stop before anyone could come after her and got on.

It was even darker than usual that morning, and rain clouds hovered overhead. Thunder rumbled in the distance and fog swirled along the ground. She grumbled to herself as her hair started to frizz.

The bus was almost empty. The driver ignored her as she handed over the money and she took a seat near the middle. There were a few guys at the back of the bus that she didn't want to sit next to, and didn't want to stare at without a can of pepper spray. But she got a glimpse of them as she sat down.

There were four of them, and they were all so typical. Max could have taken two of them if she'd been willing to fight, because she had enough anger in her now to throw one out the bus window, but those were the kind of guys you saw in videos about sexual harassment.

She shuddered slightly and turned her attention back to her job. Or, she tried to. It was just so different than this. In the same area, there was her crummy box of a house, and thugs that went around parading the fact that they could kick your ass, and huge mansions with dark-haired, dark-eyed boys inside who-

She shook her head vigorously to rid herself of that image. She had told herself over and over again that he was just a spoiled brat of a boy who knew everything about her personal life and flaunted it smugly. He had humiliated her, even though there was no one around. Max never begged or pleaded or apologized to jerks, least of all him.

A chorus of laughter erupted in the back, and Max bit her lip as she remembered that they could see her shaking her head and probably thought she was some kind of maniac. The last thing she needed was to be noticed by a band of thugs older than she was.

They made jokes about her in the back, called her a whore and whistled for her, which she pointedly ignored. They burst into a new round of laughter. The bus driver took no notice, of course. But then, she wouldn't have wanted trouble either.

When the bus stopped where she was supposed to take it on foot and walk to work, she flew off and walked in a rush with her arms folded around her in the cold morning air. No cell phone, no pepper spray, no one to see her or hear her cry for help. The situation wasn't good.

She heard the boys shuffling off the bus behind her, and she walked even faster. She heard the bus driver protesting and telling them that it wasn't their stop, and then she heard the sounds of a struggle and the leader telling him that he paid his 'fucking money' and he could get off wherever he wanted to.

Max bit back a groan as they got off the bus. They walked faster than she did, and she heard their footsteps behind her. When she was walking as fast as she could, they were still walking fast her, keeping far enough away just taunting her, scaring her. She couldn't see anything through the darkness and the fog, and she knew the mansion was too far away.

When she felt a hand brush the back of her jacket, a shiver went up her body. She couldn't fight back, and she couldn't escape. They were going to catch her, and do things to her that you heard about on the news the next day. 'Local Girl Found in Sewer', here we come, Max thought grimly.

But she had to think of a way to escape. So she acted on instinct, or rather, the quickest idea that popped into her head. Digging in her pocket to see if she had pepper spray, she came across the huge ring that she'd worn last year to prom. It was gorgeous, but it would have to go. She slipped it on her middle finger and pulled a thin glove on over it.

And she turned around, snapping her fist straight into the gang leader's face as hard as she possibly could. Before he could even blink, he'd been knocked over, a circular indention in his forehead. When he looked back up, she was running down the road.

If it wasn't for the fact that they were all watching her, she could have used her wings to fly away. But she was mutated, a freak, and Jeb had told her never to use them, after all. Max thought it was just because he was jealous, or scared of them, but in any case, she just couldn't.

_But is dying in a sewer better? _

The leader swore loudly and picked himself off the ground. It hadn't hurt badly, but it bought her some time to escape. That bitch was smart. But he smiled with satisfaction as he realized that yelling wouldn't do her any good. There was absolutely no one around.

Her lungs were aching, but she didn't look back as she gulped in mouthfuls of air and ran as fast as she could. She was shrieking like a banshee.

She didn't see him get up and come after her, she had just assumed he'd be out cold. But now she'd gotten him angry, and his friends were following him right toward her. When she finally decided to turn around, she saw them not ten feet away.

_This is it, _she thought. _Well, so much for my plan. He's even more pissed. _She screwed her eyes shut and ran faster.

And then she was falling, tripping over her own feet and plummeting to the ground. Her hands and face had been scraped, but the only thing she was worried about was the gang landing on her.

But they never did.

She peeked through the cracks in her bloody fingers, and she gasped aloud. There, in front of her and doing a fairly good job of beating up the gang members, was Fang. "Go, Max," he growled at her as he grabbed a gang member's arm and flipped him over his shoulder onto the curb.

She crawled to pick herself up and scrambled to her feet. As soon as she did, a searing pain shot up her back and she toppled over, clutching at her ankle. _Shit. _She had landed on it wrong, and was unable to walk on it. She crawled over as far away from the fight as she could and sat behind her tree, wincing as the pain became more prominent.

When she looked over her shoulder, he was still there, kicking one of them so hard she heard a rib snap. No one had that much strength at seventeen, no one but her, she noted. And how had he just shown up like that? Her eyes narrowed. This might only be his way of making sure she was never rude to him again.

But hadn't she been glad when she first saw that it was him? Surprised, but glad all the same? No. That was impossible. She was still mourning over the loss of her old life, for God's sake. This jerk was no one special. He'd probably dated all his maids one time or another, even led Brigid on.

Secretly, even if she wasn't going to admit it to anyone, hadn't she felt that sinking feeling in her stomach when Brigid had told her they were dating? She'd been happy when Brigid had been fired, and she knew it. But she wasn't going to tell anyone else that.

A few minutes later, Fang walked out from behind the trees and glanced down at her. She hated being in this position, helpless and not being able to do a damn thing about it, and on top of that, being rescued by the very person she was supposed to despise.

"Get up," he said like she was five years old. She stared at him for a long minute before sighing.

"If I could get up, would I still be here? I'll be fired, so what's the point?"

"No, you won't. It's not like she's so bad that she'll fire you if you're injured. And since you were stupid and tripped, I guess I'll have to carry you back."

There was a long pause. "…Excuse me, what?"

"I said, I'll have to carry you. You can't walk on that thing, can you? Here," and he bent down and picked her up bridal-style, much to her horror. He grinned down at her cheerfully. "I'm gonna take you back home to clean the blood off your face. Your ankle's gonna be fine. You'll just have to hobble for a few days."

"You know, I'm beginning to think you sent those thugs after me."

"Don't flatter yourself."

He started walking, Max kicking and putting up a fuss the whole way. It wasn't exactly a self-esteem boost, but he ignored it, just like he ignored his heart beating like a jackhammer in his chest. He'd spent seventeen years putting on an act to be calm and cool in front of everyone, and he'd perfected it. In one day, this one normal girl was about to tear it down.

And at the beginning of the day, Max was dead set with being miserable, and even though she should have been terrified of this normal boy cradling her back and possibly feeling her wings, she was feeling…happy? It had been a long time since she was last happy. Had this dark boy actually managed to make her happy?

Then, as he was walking to their house in the early hours of the morning, with no one to see them and the fog to cover up what they'd done, Fang felt like leaning down and kissing Max senseless, but he didn't. She just couldn't get involved with someone like him, and that was final.

Besides, he didn't want to. No, he absolutely didn't feel a thing for the stubborn, obnoxious, pigheaded, selfish, beautiful, wonderful, smart…alright, maybe he did feel a small _something. _

But if he didn't want to, if he was absolutely against it, then why was he leaning towards her with his eyes slowly closing, and why was Max's breath quickening, and why did she look so unbelievably afraid of him getting involved with someone like _her_?

Just when Max was finally ready to give in and just finally be herself around a boy, he pulled back abruptly, her head thumping awkwardly against his chest. Her cheeks reddened significantly as she stared at the reason for Fang pulling away. Right in front of them, looking as if she might cry, was Brigid.

She stared at Max in Fang's arms and knew that everyone, even your friend, even your boyfriend, could stab your back sometimes, and sometimes, as Max knew, too, they could get together for that much extra pain. "Brigid," Max said in a startled voice.

"What are you doing here?" Fang asked coldly, noticing that they were right outside the giant wrought-iron gate of his family's house. This was all very uncomfortable for him. The girl still had a crush on him, for heaven's sake.

"Relax, I'm not going there," she said in a voice just as hostile. "I'm going to see about an opening for a new job. Do you want know where the new job is, Fang?"

"Not especially," he smirked.

She continued as if she hadn't heard him. "Thanks to your stupid mother, and _you _for not sticking up for our love, I have to get a job at a _gas station! _A ruddy, worthless gas station, because that's the only place in this damn area that's hiring!" And she stormed past him in a huff.

He turned around to watch her stalk away, because we both knew there would be more. There's no way that chatterbox would have something so short to say to us.

"And another thing," she stopped dramatically without turning back around, "I know what you guys are doing. You're trying to make me jealous by being together all the time. Well, I hope you two get caught. I can't tip your mom off, because _I don't work there anymore, _but someone else will."

"We're not together!" Max protested

"Then why is he carrying you?" she almost shouted.

"It's a long story!" Max yelled.

"I'm sure it is," Brigid whispered, then took off walking away.

"What a bitch!" Max cursed to no one in particular.

* * *

Angel was waiting by the door for them when they got there. Worry was stamped all over her face as she glared up at Fang, demanding to know where he was. Then her eyes traveled down to Max and her bloody face and hands, and her mouth dropped open. "What did you do to her?" Angel screamed at Fang. "I thought you liked her!"

Fang would have slapped his forehead if he wasn't supporting Max. He glared down at Angel, who recoiled a bit, but grinned all the same. "Uh, whoops, gotta go," she said awkwardly right before scampering nervously away.

He rolled his eyes and walked past the huge staircase around to the enormous kitchen, which was a lot smaller if there were twenty people in it. To his despair, he remembered that this was the time of day when his mother usually had her breakfast now. It took twenty people just to make her breakfast and another three to deliver it. How did she manage to stay normal after eating that much? Or did she only order that much for the joy of seeing her slaves scramble for her praise? He thought the second.

"Out!" Fang bellowed, enjoying seeing the looks on their faces as heads raised in confusion. Rolling pins were dropped and servants stopped mid-step. Most of them stopped just to stare and wonder why another servant was in Fang's arms. The older ladies shook their heads sadly, knowing Fang had found another plaything that would last a few weeks. Of course, it never occurred to them that he just fell in love easily.

One of the cooks walked up and raised a hand timidly. Fang seemed to be enjoying this, Max noted, as he 'called on' said cook cheerfully. "But sir," the cook stammered, "Your mother will be…displeased…if she doesn't receive her breakfast at eight o'clock sharp."

"She can eat like a whale _tomorrow_," Fang clarified, receiving a few shocked expressions, several people biting their lips to keep from laughing. It had been a while since anyone had stood up against the 'queen', and no one had expected her own son. But then, he was the only one who _could _and not get fired.

With an excuse to get out of work and all the slave labor, no matter what they were getting paid, a few scurried out of the room right then. After one of Fang's signature dark look, most of them averted their eyes and ran out. The few that looked into the eyes were instantly terrified. The rest were driven out by the threat of being fired.

Fang swept a cookie tray off the counter and set Max on it, stepping over the cookie tray absently. Max's eyes narrowed. Some other servant had worked hard to make those, even if they were for his mother the bitch. He wouldn't know, he hadn't worked a day in his life. "Pick those up," she glared at him.

"Hmm?" he asked as he rummaged through multiple drawers, looking for a band-aid. He flipped through one drawer, jumbling the contents, then moving on to the next one. In a few minutes, the whole kitchen was a jumbled mess, the cookies still on the floor.

There was food on the floor, broken dishes, unorganized drawers and he had even opened the refrigerator looking for the band-aids. What was more than that, he didn't even seem to notice, or care, what a mess he was making.

Max was so caught up in watching the human hurricane go around the kitchen that she had lost her voice, but she hadn't forgotten about the cookies on the floor. He opened a cupboard hurriedly, and two plates tumbled out, crashing to the floor and breaking into small pieces. She couldn't take it any longer. She turned around so she was kneeling on the counter and opened the tallest cupboard she could find, the one everyone probably forgot.

There, in the far back corner next to old matches and a pack of cigarettes, were the band-aids. Covered in cobwebs but unused, clearly no one in the house had ever skinned a knee riding a bike or even cut themselves with a knife by accident. She pulled it out and cleaned it up a bit, then held it out for Fang to see.

He paused in the middle of yanking open the newest cabinet, causing a container of salt to fall out and break, spilling tiny granules all over the countertops and floor. His shoulders slumped as he took the band-aids from her. He opened the biggest one and placed it on the palm of her right hand, then grabbed a few smaller ones for her face and left hand.

"How did you know where they were?" he asked after a few minutes, still focusing on putting the band-aids on her face and hands. In her opinion, she was completely covered and he was doing a crappy job, but it was kind of nice with no one around. He was trying to care and do the right thing, but unfortunately, he wasn't quite used to it.

"We keep them in the same place back home," she answered. "Only, they usually aren't surrounded by matches, cigarettes and cobwebs. At my house, people actually need to _use _the band-aids sometimes, not like here in your little padded cell."

"I resent that," he said sarcastically. "But actually, you lied. The band-aids at your house _have _been surrounded by cigarettes and cobwebs, pretty much ever since-"

"Ever sine my dad started smoking again, I know," she interrupted him angrily. "Look, why do you know so much about me? It's a violation of privacy, and who are you to know everything about my family's problems? Yes, my brother's a blind guy who's too poor to go to college, and Gazzy's taken the move better than me, and-"

"And you're angry at him for moving away from your school, your friends, at him for moving away from your school, your friends, _your boyfriend,_" he muttered the last part under his breath, but she didn't hear. "But most of all, you're not even really mad at him, you love him and you want him to know that, but you're just frustrated and hurt ever since your mother died."

Her head snapped up. "How do you know that? I haven't told anyone about that, at least no one here, and I haven't even mentioned it to my dad for weeks. So how do you freaking know everything about me?" She grabbed him by the shirt collar, and pulled him dangerously close, forgetting even how much she was starting to like him for the moment.

"It-wasn't-me-it-was-_Angel_!" he choked out, finally. She released him with a trembling hand, sending him back on the floor. She had almost really liked the little girl, in fact, she _had. _Angel had a spark that wasn't from an ordinary rich kid. Angel was smart.

"And how would Angel happen to know everything imaginable about me, and all the other servants," Max asked, struggling to keep her voice calm and failing miserably. She was close to hyperventilating. What had happened? Had they sent spies in to check on her, into her room at night, hunting through her diary that she hadn't written in for almost a year, ever since her mother died and her dad had lost his job because of his grief?

Fang held up a finger and winced as he picked a piece of broken porcelain from a plate out of his back, groaning as it came loose, then tossing it across the room, reaching for the band-aids. Max held them back defensively. "Tell me," she ordered.

"She…Angel can read minds," he blurted. Max stared for a minute and then rolled her eyes.

"Sure, Fang, you really had me going there. Now tell me the real reason or that iced tea over there's going down your _pants._"

His eyes widened. "No, Max, I'm telling the truth. She was born with it. It's…it's hard to explain, but she can read minds. And every day for the past couple of weeks you've worked for us, all you've been thinking about is how much you resent about working here."

It took her a moment to process that. She took a deep breath in and then let it go. "Alrighty, so Angel can read minds. That's just dandy. All I need right now is a little twelve year old inside my head."

"Thirteen," Fang corrected automatically.

"Whatever," she snapped. "Anything else I should know about? Does Nudge have heat-vision? Does your mother have the power to kill someone by looking at them? Well, maybe. Do _you _by any chance _turn invisible whenever you want to_?"

His blood ran cold for a moment. Had Max figured out _his _secret? But when she continued ranting, he breathed a sigh of relief. She had only been joking because she was pissed off.

"So you know what? You're going to clean this whole damn kitchen, because if you wanna know so much about my life, _this _is part of it. Get going now unless you want me to force you into the female maid's uniform that _I_ have to wear on a day to day basis, that shows my freaking ass!"

She had already forced a broom into his hands and a trash can at his feet. "Today, you're going to do _my _job. If I find a single cookie crumb on the floor, you're a dead man."

And that's exactly what he did. He cleaned the kitchen. Sure, it took him almost the entire day, and he couldn't figure out where to put the broom back once he was done, and he burnt the replacement cookies, but she sure had a good time watching him.

At the end of the day, he wiped his forehead and gave Max a chocolate-chip cookie. She smirked down at him. "So…" he began, trying to get on her good side. "I guess I could talk to my mom about new maid's uniforms…"

"That would be lovely," she smiled down at him, got down from the counter and walked away as she heard Iggy's truck pull up in his driveway.

It was Fang's turn to smirk. There was no way he was ever, ever getting that pretty girl a new maid's outfit.

_Sexist pig, _Max thought to herself, knowing what he was thinking, as she walked away.

* * *

**I couldn't take it anymore. I hate it when authors keep a secret for twenty chapters and then they finally tell you the big secret. The 'tragedy' is that her mom died, just so we're clear. More on that later. **

**Yes, Max was a bitch. You probably would be too if you were living in a box with Gazzy. xD Yeah, Fang was a man whore. In today's society, you don't have to be rich to be one. It'll get better. **

**Thanks for reviewing :) **

**~Rachel**


	5. Chapter 4

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 4 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted June 18, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,695 words

Max/Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 / The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them?**

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to James Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money writing this story, I simply write for reviews. _

Fang blinked and rubbed his eyelids, slowly sitting up in the four-poster bed. It was later than he usually woke up, nine thirty-two. The light spilled through the window and into his tired eyes, and he yawned and fell back on the pillows groggily.

His eyes widened and he sat up again as he realized that Max was already there. Somewhere in his house, dusting something or other or fluffing a pillow or two. He'd been waiting for her to get there late into the night, passing out around four in the morning.

Today was going to be a very important day. He had given it a lot of thought. It was dangerous, even for her very life, to be around him, and she had no idea, but he'd do anything to protect her, should it come to that. She was the girl he had decided he wanted to be with.

So he had decided to just ask her out and get it over with. If she rejected him, that was fine, and she had every right to. He'd been a jerk, and a snooping jerk, using Angel's power to find out everything he could about her. At least she wasn't a freak with wings like he was.

Nevertheless, it wasn't just her mother's death that she'd been hiding. Angel couldn't find out anything more, but she told Fang that Max was trying desperately hard to forget whatever it was. Yes, she was hiding something, alright.

He stretched out his wings with a groan as they peeled off his back. He had to keep them hidden all day. His mother hated them, resented them in every way, that her special little son wasn't perfect. The servants couldn't know, and it was only in the family. He couldn't even go swimming. Ever. He hadn't been swimming once in his life. And they had a huge pool out back.

"Wow, it's just not your decade," a voice behind him remarked, and he jumped a foot off the bed and crashed against the nightstand. He groaned and looked up. Angel peered off the bed at him, grinning cheerily. "Hi, Fang!"

"Angel?" he blinked lazily, three Angel's swimming around his head. "What are you doing here? Stay out of my head!"

"Can't help it!" she complained. "Your thoughts are loud. All I hear is Max this and Max that, don't you have a life? If you want to ask her out, just _ask her_! And put a shirt on!"

"What? Oh, yeah." He walked over to the closet and grabbed a black shirt and a pair of black skinny jeans. He didn't even need to look. They were all the same, except for the design. The shirt he happened to be holding showed a cracked skull with emo hair. He turned invisible and slid the shirt on.

"Ugh, you know I hate it when you do that!" she complained.

"I'm invisible!"

"But I can _tell _that you're changing! It's wrong."

"Then get out of my room." He reappeared and walked into the bathroom. She followed him and handed him his toothbrush pointedly.

"Fang, this is important! Max isn't one of those stupid Barbie dolls like Lissa or Brigid!"

"Thanks, don't hold back," he rolled his eyes.

"Whatever," she continued. "The point is that you can't screw this one up! You have to be nice to her, and you have to make yourself seem like a normal human instead of the mutant bird slash retard you are!"

"Again, don't hold back!" he was really frustrated now. All he wanted to do was ask Max out, but Angel was making a good point. He couldn't let her think he had wings, and he had to seem better than her first impression of him. "You're right," he gave in.

"I know I am," she said cheerfully. "Look, put on some deodorant or something. And comb your hair. And pop that zit."

"What!" he yelped as Angel cackled.

"Just kidding," she rolled her eyes and walked out of the room. Fang shook his head as he fell back on the bed and cursed into the pillows.

* * *

The warm summer air brushed against Nudge slightly as she walked out onto the front steps of the house and out into the garden. It was enormous, stretching through most of the side yard with gardeners running along here and there. There was a small stream that flowed through the property, a white gazebo in the center, and more flowers than Fang had emo T-shirts.

She stepped around the side and crossed the stepping stones into the garden, stopping here and there to admire a certain rose or sit lazily on a bench. There wasn't much to do, stuck in a house where you couldn't have friends or even other teenagers over. She had always been homeschooled like Angel and Fang, and there simply weren't male servants her age.

She looked out to the rest of the world outside her cage, the world behind that wrought-iron fence. To be honest, she was somewhat comfortable in her life where she got every dress she wanted, every pair of shoes, anything she wanted, so she probably wouldn't ever escape the house. But then, it was her choice in two years' time.

But just there, behind the fence and with no idea where he was going, was a pale boy with strawberry blonde hair. Nudge's heartbeat quickened as she realized that it was the one from the other day, Max's brother. Iggy. But what was he doing here?

"Iggy," she called, getting off the bench. "Iggy!" she repeated, running across the front lawn and down the driveway.

"…Nudge?" he asked uncertainly. "Man, I didn't think I walked this far. If I'm here, then I'm halfway across town."

"Um, well, now that you're here, maybe, do you want to come in? I mean, I've never really had a guy over here, because my mom is so strict and all, actually I've never had anyone over here, my mom wouldn't even let me have a goldfish, or even an imaginary friend, only my sister Angel,"

"_I would love to come in!_" he yelled over the noise. She closed her mouth and blinked up at him. "Just as long as you don't keep talking. Maybe I can find Max and figure out what time it is and maybe call my dad."

"Great!" she said, and she hoped she didn't sound too eager. For some reason, she really liked him, and she liked spending time with him, even though he was blind. She didn't look on him as handicapped. She had actually been looking forward to seeing him again. "I'll take you inside now," she said lamely, and grabbed his arm, dragging him along with her.

_I'm usually a lot more dignified than this, _she thought in despair. _What if he thinks I'm uncool? Whenever I'm around him I always say way too much…I'm such a blabbermouth! _She dragged him inside and was relieved to see that no one else was in the main hall. If her mother caught her, she'd be dead.

For once, Iggy didn't think about Ella. He'd had enough of feeling guilty. Just for today, maybe he'd let her go and have a little fun with the life that hadn't been in the least enjoyable. Just for today, he'd relax and go with the flow, see why Nudge had been popping into his mind for the last few days.

She led him past the main hallway and up the stairs, careful not to disturb anyone. It was still early in the morning, so her mother was probably still in her room or in the shower, getting ready for the day in some way. She led Iggy down the long hallway and into her room at the end.

If Iggy could've seen it, his jaw would have dropped to the floor. The very room echoed. A huge four-poster bed was on the wall to the left, with a huge canopy of silks and satins, a waterfall of pillows and the fluffiest bedspread you ever saw.

But it didn't end there. To the right, a huge vanity slash personal salon was standing, shelves of makeup resting next to it. In the enormous walk-in closet, there was a huge row of shelves in the middle just for the high-heeled shoes, with dress after dress –no plaid, of course- and every designer name you could think of.

"Are we in your room?" He asked curiously, marveling at the _room, room, room_ echo as his voice bounced off the walls.

"Yup," she answered, flopping onto the bed. "It's the only place in the house where no one bothers me. My mom won't even let me off the grounds. I've been here pretty much forever. I get my clothes made for me."

"Still," he said in awe, "Your house…it's not a box! You have room to move, servants, gourmet food, _you don't have to duck under the door_…seriously. I think you're pretty lucky."

She shook her head. She should have known that he'd be just another worthless guy who didn't see what a prison the big house really was. He believed that she was a regular princess. "You don't understand," she said quietly. "I'm just as blind to what it's like outside of here as you are. It's more disabling than a reward. I hate it here."

"Nudge, I didn't mean it like that. I just meant that for me, it'd be a step up. Pretty much wherever I am is a prison. I just don't want to worry anymore." He walked over and sat down next to her on the bed with accuracy that she marveled at.

"Every day, I wake up and wonder if Max and my dad are going to fight. She scares out younger brother, Gazzy, and she goes on daily rampages. I don't blame her. She loved our mom a lot. But I don't want to worry about fights, or money for food, or if my dad will ever find a job. Hell, I'm only nineteen. I don't need that."

"I'm sorry," she whispered. _He's gone through so much…I never really knew that. So he's nineteen…is that too old for me? Max and Fang are the same age…although Brigid was only fifteen, and Fang sort of dated her…_

"Nudge?"

Her head snapped up. "Huh? What?"

"I just said that it's okay. I don't really want people to feel sorry for me. Just to understand."

She never had time to answer. She heard footsteps coming from down the hall, sharp, pointed footsteps that could only belong to her mother. Her eyes widened and she started to have a panic attack. Her mother couldn't find him here, certainly not a boy, most definetly not a poor guy, and absolutely not Max's brother.

She grabbed Iggy's arm, and before he could protest, she shoved him into the closet, shut the doors quickly, turned off the light and grabbed a magazine. She threw herself onto the bed and opened to a random page, all done in the course of three seconds. When the door opened, it was if Iggy had never entered the room.

Something about the way Nudge had shoved Iggy into the closet told him that he shouldn't come out or make a sound, so he sat and waited. He heard the bedroom door open, and footsteps. There was really no use in peeking through the crack in the door.

"Nudge, I need to ask you something…private…" he heard a voice. It had to be her mother. He pressed his ear to the door and tried not to breathe as he listened. "Ever since Brigid was fired-"

"You mean, ever since _you _fired her," Nudge said pointedly. "You should really let him have a life. What do you want him to be, gay?"

"You watch your mouth, young lady," her mother snapped. "Dating the maids is strictly against the rules. They'll get caught up in flirting and such, and find no time for their work. They'll start acting like silly little children, totally irresponsible."

"Then who should he date?" Nudge fired back. "You won't let us go out of this house, Mom! We'll never meet anyone decent to go out with until we're forty, at this rate! I'm sixteen and I have no friends. I don't know anyone from outside your little prison!"

"That's not fair! You know what happened to Fang when he was only two years old, and you know how he had to pay for it! If anyone finds out…you know…then we'll be swamped with people, and I will _not _let the same thing happen to you! That is _final, _young lady!"

Nudge stood up on the other side of the door and glared at her mother. "That's not fair! I don't care if it happens to me! Anything to get out of this house of horrors!"

"You are the only normal child left, Nudge, and I will not let anything happen to you. Believe it or not, you were never considered adopted. I love you the same as I love Fang and Angel, and vice versa. You know that's not the point!"

"Then what is?" Nudge asked blankly. She'd had enough of fighting with her mother time and time again. She didn't want to be protected anymore; she wanted to have her own life. And one thing was for sure – she had to escape.

"I want to know if Fang's seeing anyone. You know as well as I do that if anyone knows his secret, there'll be hell to pay. You think some girl won't give him up for money? Well she will! So tell me, is there anyone here, anyone at all, that he could possibly like?"

"No," Nudge lied through her teeth. "It's been three days since you drove Brigid out. How fast do you think he works?"

That seemed to be enough for her. She walked from the room, leaving Nudge alone once again. Iggy crawled out of the closet and glared at her, brushing the dust off his hair. "You have a lot of explaining to do," he growled. "Start at the beginning."

* * *

While Iggy and Nudge were sneaking through the front door, Max had been in one of the guest bedrooms changing the linens and fluffing pillows. As she finished placing the last pillow on top of the great pillow pyramid –not as extravagant as Nudge's, of course- she was about to leave when she ran headlong into Fang.

"I'm s-sorry," she stammered as she looked up at him, both of them doing an awkward shuffle before she grabbed his shoulders and held him in place while maneuvering around him.

"Wait!" he grabbed her shoulder and gulped nervously as he turned her around. "Um, I need to ask you something."

"Well, whatever it is, make it quick. I have lots of dusting and pillow-fluffing to do," she rolled her eyes. She still hated her job with a passion, even if she did think that Fang was kind of cute.

"Uh, I…uh…well…I was going to ask you…to….make my bed?" He winced internally but managed to keep a straight face.

"Make your bed?" she repeated in disbelief. "God, Fang, how lazy are you?" Nevertheless, she brushed past him and walked down the hall to his room. When she turned the corner and opened the door, she walked inside, only to find the bed already made.

"Uh…one of the other servants must have done that," he said slowly. She raised an eyebrow and walked towards him, backing him into the wall.

"You know, Fang…if there's something you want to say, just say it." She grinned mischievously up at him. She was so close…

"Yeah. I think there's a toilet on the first floor that needs scrubbing," he smirked, and ducked out of the room.

* * *

"So, let me get this straight," Iggy said as he tried to process the information he'd just been given. "Your little sister can read minds? How the hell did that happen? Is she from the planet Krypton, or has she been playing in toxic waste? Did she take steroids as a child? God, tell me something to make it all make sense."

"I can't," she sighed. "It was a surprise to us. Fang just tells people that she was born with it, but it's not the truth. She was abducted when she was a kid and experimented on. Something they did allowed her to read minds."

Iggy's thoughts immediately flew to Max and how she'd been abducted as a kid and taken to a horrible place. The kind where they experimented on humans, animals, and sometimes combined both into a whole new kind of person. DNA was blended into something it wasn't meant to be until the person just wasn't human anymore. Max had been lucky, as weird as it was to say it.

"Sometimes I feel like the only normal one in my family," Nudge admitted. "It isn't always a good thing. My mom's always trying to protect me from 'what's out there and trying to get me'. I just want to be a normal teenager without any psychotic control freak in my family."

"I know what you mean," Iggy answered. "Between Max and Gazzy, I'm always the normal one. I can't go to college, and I work at a gas station. I'm a loser with no friends and no life."

"It's not easy when your sibling has wings," they both said at the same time, then stared at each other. Neither one of them had meant to speak, and they certainly hadn't been prepared for the other to say the same thing. "Start talking," they both commanded.

"No, you go first this time," Nudge shook her head. "I gotta hear this."

* * *

Max rounded the corner to see if Nudge's room needed cleaning. This time of day, she was usually making her rounds. The poor kid. She was so bored that she'd be willing to do a servant's work –not that her mother would let her- to rid herself of the boredom. Even Max felt sorry for her.

She opened the door and came face to face with Nudge and Iggy sitting on the bed and chatting. They looked surprised, like she'd just walked in on them making out or something. Her eyes narrowed. The only explanation was for them to be sneaking around together.

"Alright, you guys. Nudge, your mom won't even let you date. And Iggy, you have a-"

"Condition, I know," Iggy interrupted her. "Nudge is perfectly okay with me being blind." He shook his head at her behind Nudge's back. Clearly he didn't want her to know that he already had a girlfriend. Not like Max was going to tell on him.

"What are you doing?" Max asked tiredly. "You know if you get caught your mom will just have something more to yell at you for, Nudge. It's not like you need that."

But Nudge wasn't concentrating on what Max had to say. Her eyes were round when she pointed to Max. "You have wings!" she almost yelled. Iggy clapped a hand over her mouth. "Not so loud!" he hissed. "Do you want the whole house to know?"

"Stip. Now," Nudge ordered. Max gave her a look of disbelief. "Oh, you have a bra on, right?" she questioned. "Just, like, undo your zipper. I just want to see your wings." Max glanced at Iggy. "He's blind!" Nudge cried. "Just undo the zipper!"

"Okay, okay!" Max gave in and unzipped the dress, and turned around, groaning as her wings came out of the dress. They were tawny brown and white speckled, stretching a good thirteen or fourteen feet across. Nudge nodded approvingly.

"Alrighty, well, this has been fun," Max said, folding her wings back in and zipping up her dress. "Iggy, I'll get you for this later. And Nudge, if you tell anyone about this, you're dead, I don't care how much your mom's paying me." And she left the room without a backward glance.

* * *

She trudged down the hall tiredly. This was just going to get worse with Nudge knowing her secret, because she couldn't keep a secret if you chained her to a deaf guy in a room alone for three months. Someone in the house was going to figure out that she had wings soon enough, that someone being her boss.

Now that it was lunchtime, everyone was gathering on the other side of the house to prepare the food for her majesty the queen.

Her luck only got worse as she ran into Fang on the stairs. He opened his mouth, but she stopped him. "Look, Fang, I don't really have time to talk to you about anything. You all want to know everything about me? Well, now you do. You can go ask Nudge anything about me, she'll tell you it all." She brushed past him, about to cry.

Fang wasn't nearly stupid enough to take her seriously, or to think that nothing was wrong. If he didn't get the guts to ask her now, he never would. And he knew it might not have been the best time, but it was now or never. So he grabbed her arm and pulled her back around, ignoring her watery eyes.

"Then I'll make this as quick as I possibly can. Look, Max…I like you." He prepared himself for the worst, for Max to turn him down or spit in his face or slap him, anything. He didn't expect for her to every say that maybe she felt the same way.

He was wrong.

She was silent. "…I like you, too," she said shyly after a while. A weight was lifted off his chest, and for a moment, he almost smiled. He was glad that everyone else was on the other side of the house, and therefore couldn't hear this little exchange.

"Max…do you want to go on a date with me?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "Yes, I do." She turned away and continued walking down the stairs, biting her lip to hide her growing smile.

"I'll pick you up at six," he called after her.

* * *

**I already have the next chapter planned out. It's gonna be a lot better, probably not what you'd expect. Again, sorry for the lack of updates recently/any POV mistakes -again, writing in the third person sucks-. **

**My computer's had a lot of problems lately D: We had around eight hundred viruses when we got it fixed a few days ago. Then my dad's laptop crashed, and we lost all internet connection on my stepmom's. So it just recently got fixed, in other words. I'll probably be getting a new laptop soon...until then, don't fail me, damn computer! *shakes fist* **

**So please, don't forget to leave a review!**

**~Rachel**


	6. Chapter 5

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 5 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted June 19th, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,463 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 / The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews. _

* * *

Max stepped out of the old beat-up pickup truck anxiously as Iggy pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant. Iggy grinned from the driver's seat, Gazzy making kissy faces and teasing her lightly. She tried to smile, but she just couldn't. What if this turned out to be a total disaster?

"Go," Iggy laughed. "Have fun. Eat lots of caviar and snails and don't forget to flirt with the waiter a little to make him jealous." He made her giggle, which was exactly what he'd been aiming for. Gazzy reached over and pulled the door shut, sealing her fate.

Before she knew it they were off, and she was standing alone facing the restaurant. She was relieved, from the outside it was a short little restaurant with not much to look at. Maybe it would be only a slight step-up from a McDonald's, for all she knew.

One step inside told her that she had been wrong. It was much larger on the inside, with crystalline chandeliers and crisp white tablecloths. Waiters in formal wear scurried around in a quiet order.

She didn't see a single child there, or even a teenager. The only ones around were middle-aged adults and old people. _Fang wanted to take me here? The food better be damn near perfect. _"Can I help you?"

"What?" Max snapped out of her trance. But she just couldn't help herself. Even before her mom had died, she had never been in a place like this. Strictly middle class. This was the kind of place where you'd spend a thousand dollars for a burger, two hundred dollars extra for cheese.

"How many in your party?" The woman at the podium in front of her asked cheerfully. "You look gorgeous, by the way. Meeting a date here?"

"Oh, thanks," Max said absently, eyeing her dress. It was one she had borrowed from Nudge, one that had been too big for her. Strapless and black, it stopped right above her knees. Her hair was partially up and she was wearing earrings so dangly her ears felt like they would break. "Yeah, um, I'm just waiting for…someone."

Yes, Iggy and Nudge had been only too happy to do everything for her. They were getting to be quite the pair. Of course, Iggy was content at first to pick out both the dress and put on the makeup, until he realized that the dress he had chosen was a pillowcase and that the makeup kit was a shoe.

Max walked away and sat down on the bench next to the exit. She felt a churning feeling in her stomach as the anxiety started to build up in her. The minutes ticked by, and she was starting to get the feeling that Fang had been lying, and that he had stood her up.

She whirled around into the bathroom, which was thankfully deserted. "God, what am I doing? He's gonna come, don't be an idiot! He probably just had to get away from his mom or Nudge is doing his hair or something." A few deep breaths later and she walked calmly out of the bathroom.

Still, ten minutes felt like ten years as she sat in an uncomfortable position. Everyone in the restaurant was extremely rich, and although she was hidden under a rich-girl costume, she would never be like that. It all seemed superficial and unnecessary, having that much. There was a time when she would have felt differently.

When he finally walked in the door casually, she jumped up and leapt for his throat. She backed him against the wall until he was cowering under her rage. "_Where. Have. You. Been?_" All heads in the restaurant swiveled towards the girl strangling her dinner date.

She jumped off of him and smoothed her dress. "Honey," she said through clenched teeth. Fang leaned down and put his lips to her ear. "I think somebody missed me," he smirked. She turned bright red and pushed him away. "Let's just go sit down or something."

But she was glad to see him.

One of the fancy-schmancy waiters led them to their table, and Fang pulled the chair out for her. She was temped to take the chair and beat him with it, screaming "sexist pig!" in his ear, but she sat down and smiled sweetly up at him. He rolled his eyes, but he was smiling, too.

"Wow, you kids officially get the award for goth couple of the century!" the waiter said sarcastically as he eyed her black dress and his black attire. He gave them a cheerful smile and was gone.

So they were left with doing nothing but staring at the menu and sneaking peeks at the other. Sometimes Fang stared a little too long, and looked pointedly away when it was her turn to look back at him. Neither one of them spoke, and Max was crossing her toes under the table, praying that it would all work out.

Max expected it to be one of those places where they took an hour just to bring you your drink, so that gave her lots and lots of time alone with Fang. _But what if I can't think of anything to say to him and it gets awkward and uncomfortable? Now that I like him, I can't just insult him…_

She stood up suddenly. "I have to go to the bathroom," she announced, and she was off before he could even answer her. She fled to the very back of the bathroom and locked herself in the handicapped stall, pulling her feet onto the toilet seat and holding her knees to her chest.

_I am such a spazz_, she thought to herself.

The waiter brought their drinks, and Fang muttered a thank you as he scuttled away. If Max thought she was nervous, that was nothing compared to what Fang felt. Not to mention that he had to sneak out of his window just to be able to come here. And his window was twenty feet off the ground, no wing slits on his tux.

Sure, he had gotten scratched and messy, but no biggie. He just hoped Max hadn't noticed the blood and dirt on him.

After ten minutes of nothing but waiting, he finally got up and headed around the corner to the women's restroom. Looking both ways, he snuck inside. A few elderly ladies saw and started conversing to each other as to whether or not he had multiple-personality disorder.

"Max?" he called quietly, leaning down to check under the stalls for feet.

"Go away!" she almost shrieked. "You're not supposed to be in here, you're a guy!"

"Man, that explains so much," he said, sarcasm dripping from his voice. "Look, Max, is it your time of the month or something?" he asked quietly.

"Gah!" she jumped up from the toilet seat and opened the door. "First of all, you don't even know what you're talking about, let alone what a 'time of the month' actually is! Did you think that it was that time when I was just naturally bitchy? Because if so, I've had a _very _long time of the month, Fang! Ugh, just go. I'll be out in a minute."

"Okay, okay!" he ran from the bathroom and out into the restaurant. But this time, everyone saw him come out. "That's him!" cried the elderly woman. "That's the poor young boy with multiple-personality disorder!"

"What?" Fang asked, dumbfounded. He had all of three seconds before they all began yelling and pointing at him, yelling that they knew a psychiatrist or that he was a freak. So he did the only thing he could have done…earn their sympathy.

"Stop it!" he stamped his foot and put one hand on his hip. "I'm only here to see my best friend, Max…ine. Maxine. I'm just a regular girl named Lisa! I love cats and puppies and cloudy days…don't judge me!" and he stormed off to his table, smirking to himself. _I am so good. _

Nudge was in her room with Iggy again, flipping through a magazine while Iggy fiddled with her iPod. "You have Brittany Spears on yo

* * *

ur iPod? I bet you like to sing it when no one's around," he grinned. "Oh, God, why's she singing about a threesome?"

Nudge was quiet for a moment, then raised an eyebrow. "Hey, if you recognized that it was Brittany Spears…then you listen to her, too."

His face turned bright red. "I…Gazzy…sometimes listens to her…"

"No, it's you!" she cackled, then got quiet. "You know…" she said, looking up at him and how incredibly cute he looked, "We have more in common than I thought." She closed her eyes and leaned forward, and saw him doing the same.

And then his cell phone vibrated –he only had it because he was 'disabled'-, and he picked it up. "Yeah, Dad? Oh, be right there." He hung up. "Nudge, I gotta go, bye!" And he was out the door.

She fell forward, but the only thing she got was a facefull of pillow.

* * *

Max walked out of the bathroom, only to hear the quiet chatter about some poor boy with multiple-personality disorder who thought he was a girl. She walked up to a waiter and asked quietly, "Who's this boy with multiple-personality disorder?"

The waiter looked surprised. "Well, you should know. That guy you're with. Poor loser. He thinks his name is Lisa and that you're his 'best friend!'." Max's eyes narrowed as she saw Fang jump up and wave at her. He had some serious explaining to do.

"Long story," he answered immediately when she sat down. "I figured," she hissed, but all he did was tell her to talk to the 'hand'. Little did she know that the old lady was spying on them just to make sure he was for real.

A few minutes later, it became awkward again, and this time, Fang was looking just as uncomfortable as she was. It was his first date with anyone, after all. She excused herself to the bathroom again, and flung herself inside.

She ran to the sink again and looked in the mirror at her wild eyes and she smoothed her hair. "Get it together!" she commanded to her reflection. If she was that reflection, she would have cowered in fear.

"Good heavens," murmured a woman at the end of the row of sinks, and fled the bathroom in alarm. "We have too many nuts loose in the restaurant tonight."

_You can say that again, _Max thought tiredly as she walked back to the table.

"What's with you?" Fang asked. "Did you not want to go out with me or something, because you're leaving a whole hell of a lot." He noticed the old woman staring at him, and he made his voice high and girly again. "I mean, a whole _heck _of a lot."

She gave an exasperated sigh. "No! I'm just a little nervous, okay? It'll be fine."

"I hope it'll be fine! I already have grandma over there thinking that I'm 'Lisa', and now this! What is the world coming to?"

She rolled her eyes and grabbed a piece of bread from the basket.

Fang did the same, and stuffed it into his mouth quickly. He was starving. But then he saw something at the front door that made his skin crawl, something that made him want to hide in any way possible. He choked on his bread and fell over.

"Max," Fang coughed, like he was about ready to have a heart attack or that he had seen a ghost. He fell off the chair and rolled under the table.

"What's wrong?" Max asked, immediately concerned. "For God's sake, don't choke to death. She leaned down and ducked under the table to face him. "What's wrong?" She grabbed her glass of water and took a drink.

"Don't look now, but I just saw my mother in the doorway." He was rewarded with a cold shower as she spewed her water all over his face. "What?" she whisper-shrieked, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand and trying not to have another panic attack. "Why is she here? Fang, I'm going to get fired!"

The witch herself was at the door, forcing some busboy to take her coat and screaming at a waiter to get her a booth, despite all the booths being taken. Her friends didn't appear to be shaken by any of this. She didn't see Max and Fang huddling under the tablecloth.

"Well, she told me that she was going to leave me in charge tonight – well, figuratively of course, because we have like a thousand servants, because she was going out to dinner. She does that all the time, going out with friends of hers. I didn't know that she meant _here _out to dinner!"

He peeked under the tablecloth and saw that she had turned away. He grabbed Max's arm and pulled her along behind the other booths as they watched her being led to her table, which just so happened to be right next to theirs.

He watched his mother sit down and bark at the waiter for a menu, and he pulled Max along with him past the main area and around to the bathrooms. "Alright, I know what you're thinking. This is horrible. But I can fix this, just give me some time…"

"Would you excuse me, I'm going to run to the restroom to freshen up a bit," Anne Walker announced to her friends. They nodded politely and she retreated to the bathroom. She had no care in the world, her son and two daughters were at home like good children, and Nudge was finally over that disobedient phase.

"We have a problem!" Max squeaked to Fang, who turned around and saw his mother waving back at her friends. He looked all around, but he couldn't just drag Max into the men's room, and they were trapped.

Then he saw it. He saw the air vent right behind where Max was standing. Without warning, he pried the lid off. "Max, go in the air vent. We can find an opening in a different room, but if she catches us, you're dead, and I don't just mean figuratively. Get in!"

She shook her head. "I'll go in, but you're going in first. This dress is short, and the last thing I need is a pervert like you staring up my ass." Fang gave a deep sigh. _Ah, so much for her not figuring it out…_

"Fine," he hissed, and crawled inside the vent. It was tall enough that he had enough room if he kept his head down. "Hurry," Max urged, until there was room for her to crawl inside the vent, too. She pulled the lid on right before Anne looked over and walked into the bathroom, suspecting nothing.

"It's so dark in here!" Max complained as she followed Fang through the maze of vents. "I can't see anything, and I can barely breathe!" Fang rolled his eyes and led her to dead end after dead end.

"This is hopeless!" she cried. "Why can't we find the exit? What's wrong with you?"

"This is why I told you to go first," Fang smirked to her, and pointed ahead of him to a light coming from the end. "Look. There's your light at the end of the tunnel. Let's get out of here and I'll take you somewhere else, okay?"

But when they got there, the light at the end of the tunnel turned out to be a vent that wouldn't open, in the supply room where no one could hear them. Fang kicked at the door and smashed himself into it, but it wouldn't budge. Max hung her head in despair.

He turned around to face her but ended up getting squished himself. "Look, we're gonna get out of here. Just trust me, Max." She found herself nodding, even though a few seconds ago she had been ready to bite his head off.

They were off again, crawling through the vents, trying to find the exit. Crawling behind Fang, Max at first thought her eyes were playing tricks on her. She saw that familiar wrinkled bulk under his jacket, the kind she got, too when she was trying to conceal her wings under a hoodie.

It was the kind of thing that just made you look ripped or muscled, like a bodybuilder or some kind of dude on steroids. She wore jackets all the time because of that. She could sweat, crawling behind him, that she saw it, even though there were no wing slits.

Slowly, she reached her hand forward as she crawled, which was an odd effect. She inched closer, closer to feeling his back to seeing if it could be true, that there could be another like her, and she wouldn't be so lonely in the world. But she screwed her eyes shut and shook her head. She wouldn't. She couldn't. She was afraid to know.

But peeking out from under his jacket, she could see feathers, jet black feathers creeping out from under the jacket. Sometimes the wings relaxed when you weren't focused on them. Max felt her own wings come out, but she didn't care. She didn't want to see Fang's 'wings' anymore. She was imagining it.

She closed her eyes again, and she kept them closed, crawling along anyway. She didn't want to see whatever that had been, didn't want to get her hopes up, or confirm her worst fears – that the School had made more like her. It was a horrible thing.

She ran headlong into Fang, and opened her eyes. He was stopped right in front of a drop, and she had almost sent him off the edge. The vent just dropped, straight down. "Sorry," Max murmured. "I'll turn around." Fang nodded quickly in agreement.

But when she did, she bumped him in the back and sent him flying headfirst down the vent. He tumbled down vertically, letting out a yell and causing Max to turn back around. "Fang!" she cried, peering over the edge, craning her neck to see.

And maybe she craned her neck a little too far. She tumbled over the edge and followed Fang down into the darkness. Without warning, it ended, and she landed with a thump on top of a soft surface.

A soft surface that cracked…make that Fang's back. He groaned and pushed Max off, massaging his spine. "I think you broke something," he moaned.

"More importantly, how are we going to get out of here?" Max wailed. We're in another vent, aren't we?"

"I wouldn't be so sure," Fang said, and stood up. He walked around a bit and stumbled over something. "A coffee table," he said dryly. "How ironic." He wandered along the room, feeling along the walls for the light switch.

"Hey!" A man called, shining a flashlight on both of them. "What are you kids doing down here? You're not allowed to be in the basement. How'd you get down here anyway?" He asked curiously. Fang pointed up and cast her a murderous glare. She grinned sheepishly.

They followed the security guard up a flight of stairs and back into the restaurant. By the time they got back, his mother was gone, but Fang informed her that she wouldn't be back to the house for a while. She was stopping by the neighbor's mansion for a while.

"God, you people are rich," Max mused.

He walked her home, because he didn't exactly take a ride. He took her for ice cream and walked with her until she finished it. When they arrived at her house, Fang looked at it like he looked at his mansion. "It's nice," he said. "Not so big."

"If you like it," she shrugged.

"Do I get to meet your family?" he asked with a grin.

She shook her head. "You'll meet them one day."

He nodded, then started to walk away. "I'll see you tomorrow," he said, too intimidated and ashamed of how awful the night had been to even think about kissing her. But it surprised him when she grabbed his arm and turned him around, grabbing his jacket and pulling him closer, finally pressing her mouth to his.

He pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her waist, not caring if her hands were on his back and could possibly feel his wings. He'd have to deal with it eventually, but now he just wanted to feel the kiss.

When they broke apart, she leaned against his chest and he whispered, "I'm sorry about the way tonight turned out."

She looked up at him. "Are you kidding? That was the best date ever."

* * *

**Alright, bonus chapter, because I got so many good reviews ^^ Thanks for all who do. I don't think I made any 3rd person errors this time, correct me if I'm wrong. YES! I am so getting the hang of this! WOOT xD **

**Next up, I'll have to work on Iggy and Nudge *cackle* Oh, that should be fun. **

**Again, please review for only a minute of your time! :) **

**~Rachel**


	7. Chapter 6

****

Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 6 |

by: Rachel / Chapter posted June 28th, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,719 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 | Brigid - 15/ The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

Max walked up the stairs happily the next morning, for once not cursing out the world or muttering snide comments about her father. Things had gone very well, she thought to herself. She had gotten Fang to open up a little and had even had fun. Underneath her bright smile, she was as nervous as hell. She had actually worked at fixing her hair that morning, hoping that Fang wouldn't regret it last night.

And then she remembered that no one would know. They had gone out in secret, and Fang had even snuck out of the house so that he could take her out. A part of her was disappointed at no one knowing but her family, Nudge and Angel, but she'd live. Her smile brightened as she walked into the kitchen to find a pot of coffee already made and on the counter.

She nearly jumped a foot in the air when she whirled around to see Iggy sitting at the counter and cheerily drinking his coffee with a smirk on his face. She rolled her eyes and poured herself a cup, biting her lip and trying desperately to tiptoe away before he asked any questions. "Hold it," he yelled after her, and she swore internally.

Turning back around, he grinned down at her as he stood up and put his cup in the sink. "Looked like someone had fun last night," he said with amusement as Max's blood boiled and her face turned bright red.

"It didn't _look _like anything to you," Max sneered.

"So I got Gazzy to spy for me!" he held up his hands in defense. "If you weren't so caught up in Fang's emo-ness –which again, Gazzy told me about-, you would have been able to see the blinds cracked from the front window. So, Max," he smirked. "This Fang must be _some kisser_. I think you're actually happy. I could feel the happiness radiating off your skin." He burst out laughing.

She turned around and started repeatedly beating her head against the wall. She knew she had the strength to put her head through if she wanted, but she didn't want plaster in her hair at the moment. Gazzy walked into the kitchen, still in his pajamas. He took one look at the masochistic Max and shook his head. "Hey, Ig. Do we still have coffee?"

Max turned around, seeing Gazzy. "Hey, since when did you start drinking coffee? A month ago you said you hated the stuff when Dad offered you some."

"Since an eighth-grader named Monica Lynn said that drinking coffee was more grown-up," Iggy chuckled. "Here, Gazzer." He poured Gazzy a cup and turned back to Max. "Seriously, I think Gazzy here's got himself a little crush. You know, young love and all that." Gazzy's face reddened as Max's had done only moments ago.

"So, why are you two up so bright and early on a Saturday?" Max asked. "I have work, but it's the weekend. You don't have anything you need to do. Are your lives seriously so pathetic that you have to rely on my life to have something to do?"

"Precisely," Iggy smiled. "Max, we just wanted to find out some stuff, like how the date went. Traditionally, first dates at fancy restaurants are awkward and horrible for both people, up until the kiss at the end which occasionally happens."

"But there's got to be something wrong with him!" Gazzy emphasized. "Think about it. The guy takes you to a great restaurant, kisses you and you have fun, right? So he's got to have some deep, dark secret about him that's bad. Maybe he has a zit. _In a place_."

Max rolled her eyes, but she couldn't help remembering the last night at dinner when they were crawling through the vents. Something black had poked out of his jacket, she was sure of it. But it couldn't have been a wing. She was just being hopeful, that there could be someone like her. She probably imagined the whole thing.

"Cut it out," she shook her head. "There's nothing wrong with him, except for maybe his attitude. But I'm working on him, alright? He's just another rich kid that was brought up to not care about the people doing his work. I think I could help him out of it, alright?" She walked to the entrance and slipped on her jacket, then flopped back down on the tiny couch.

"So, Ig, how about driving me?"

"No can do," he rolled his eyes. "There's a new girl coming in to work for us today. She seemed like a real ditz. I have to help her or she'll cry or get fired, and I'm her mentor, which means it'll reflect on me, and I need that job." Max shrugged and folded her arms under her head in a makeshift pillow, closing her eyes for the last few minutes before she would be on that damn city bus again.

Jeb smiled to himself as he looked around the corner at Max, Iggy and Gazzy. This was the way they had acted before all this had happened, comfortable with each other. As Gazzy made kissing faces at Max, taunting her, Jeb laughed quietly when Max leapt off the couch and chased him around the kitchen, knocking boxes of Styrofoam over in the process.

He turned around and looked at the wall across from him, where the first picture unpacked had been placed. He smiled softly at what he saw; a five-year old Max and a seven-year old Iggy, struggling to build a sand castle with their mother watching quietly from the side, holding a particularly small Gazzy. It had only been twelve years, but it felt like a century, or a different world.

_God, Val, _he thought, _I miss you so much. _

His eyes traveled back to his children, who were currently grabbing large handfuls of the packaging foam and tossing it at each other, large foam puffs raining down all the while. It spread over the floor and the counters, but Jeb couldn't bring himself to care.

Max saw him standing in the shadows of the hallway, as only she could. And instead of frowning or turning away, she actually smiled a bit at him. She still didn't forgive him, even if she knew it wasn't exactly his fault. But she couldn't bring herself to forgive or to forget yet. There would be a time when she'd be able to call him her father again, soon enough.

* * *

Fang sat on the floor of his room, in the low light. I was five o'clock in the morning, but it wasn't as if he'd gotten any sleep to begin with. The more he thought about it, the more it seemed like he had made a mistake. Last night, he'd allowed himself to be a person that he wasn't meant to be, happy and free. It just wasn't him. It wasn't who he was, and as much as he liked her, it just wasn't worth it.

And now, there wasn't even Angel to coach him or prod him to do the right thing. He was alone in the early hours of the morning, just thinking of what would happen if he were to be that person again, that carefree…silly…immature person. It frightened him, and he couldn't do it for much longer. He also couldn't risk her job, or her safety.

Most of all, the wings fanned out behind him reminded him of something he couldn't afford to forget. He was different from her, and he wasn't sure he could trust her with his secret just yet. Part of him almost wished he _could _tell her, but he knew she wasn't ready to hear something that big. And maybe he was foolish for thinking that she could be the one for him.

Today would be an important day for him, but not in the way that yesterday or the day before had been. He wouldn't be asking Max out or taking her out. Today would be the day that he let her go; the best thing that had ever happened to him, even if he didn't know it.

Gazzy and Max got off the city bus in a hurry. It was nothing like a few days ago, but there had been some boys in the back that made Max uneasy, however much Gazzy didn't care. He was more interested on the iPod he had found on the city bus and had planned to download music to from a questionably legal free music website.

"You should return it," she grumbled to him, but he paid her no attention as they walked the few blocks to Fang's house. Gazzy wasn't exactly thrilled to be trailing along with Max, after all. There were probably no maids at the house his age anyway, so it wasn't like he had the opportunity to stare at girls. It would probably all be following Max, watching her fluff pillows and sweep the floor.

"Remind me again why I have to come with you to your stupid maid job?" Gazzy complained as he followed her. He was sure he could find better things to do at home than to trail after his superior older sister and her frequent mood swings.

"Because Dad's out job hunting and Iggy has that thing with his job. Knowing you, you can't be left at home without setting the kitchen on fire," she answered matter-of-factly.

"It was only once," he grumbled to himself.

They arrived at the house soon enough, and Gazzy gasped when they were in the driveway. The driveway alone was a good seventy feet long, and the house was around four stories long, with the greenest lawn he'd ever seen and an elegant flower garden off to the side. The house itself had long white columns in the front, reaching up more than three times Max's height.

"You wait in here, and I have to go change," Max announced as she guided him inside, setting him down on one of the benches and racing away. She scowled as she saw that it was the same short-skirted uniform as always. If Fang's mother didn't want him to date, she shouldn't let the servants dress like prostitutes.

It was only around seven in the morning, and Fang was never up this late. If she knew him at all, he'd be in bed by ten. And if he wasn't, well, she'd just have to run in and get him out of bed, she thought sadistically. She picked up a can of furniture polish and an old rag. _Feather duster my ass. Who do they think I am, Cinderella? _

Walking back into the main hallway, she walked past Gazzy and removed the flower vase from the table next to him, spraying the table. As she was wiping it down, Gazzy glanced over at her and his jaw dropped. "Uh, Max? Is it wrong to feel conflicting emotions about your sister?" he joked.

Max rolled her eyes. "I didn't choose the uniform, diprod. Hell, for all I know, Fang's mom placed an order for one uniform, but when she wasn't looking, Fang changed I to the cosplay maid from hell uniform."

"That's what the uniforms in hell look like?" Gazzy wondered aloud. "Max, how exactly does one get to hell?"

She sent him a warning glance. "Keep talking and you'll get there." Sighing, she looked back at him. "I have to get on with work. I'll leave you alone here. Screw anything up and I'll beat you to a pulp." She smiled. "So, no pressure or anything."

She left him there, sitting in the lobby with nothing to do. She really should have known better, but she was in a hurry and she didn't want to deal with her little brother with Fang on her brain. So she walked away, not seeing anything bad coming. She was so wrong.

Sitting on the bench and twiddling his thumbs, he didn't notice the little girl staring at him from the staircase. For the life of her, Angel couldn't understand who this boy was with the spiked hair, the tips dyed blue, and the whole one fake earring thing he was trying to pull. With his hoodie and converse, it looked like he was trying to be badass.

But he had something radiating from him, like he could be happy no matter what happened to him. He had a sweet, rounded face with large eyes and a soft nose, and hair that was obviously blonde under the blue thing that he was trying to do.

Gazzy closed his eyes and put his feet up so that he was lying on the bench. It wasn't the most comfortable position, but he figured that as long as he was in a huge house with no TV, he might as well get some sleep. Settling himself and folding his arms behind his head, he tried to empty his mind of thoughts.

Angel snickered to herself as the thoughts left his mind and it clouded over, and she knew he was asleep. In a dream state, the mind was harder to read, like seeing someone through a fog. She crept down the stairs and over to the sleeping boy.

Even in the back of his mind, Gazzy could feel that someone was staring at him. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up, and his skin prickled. He opened his eyes sleepily to see a young blonde girl staring at him inquisitively. He jumped back in reflex, hitting his head on the back of the bench. He yelped and sat up, eyeing the girl suspiciously. She only smiled.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he asked rudely. "Who do you think you are, watching me while I sleep? God, that's creepy." He shook his head, but she didn't even flinch. She just kept smiling.

"Sorry about that," she laughed. "Just, I don't know why you're here in my house. I've never seen you before. Are you a friend of Nudge's?" she asked curiously.

His thoughts were still swimming around messily, she could tell. She couldn't find anything out about him like this. "No," he said, confused. "I'm Max's younger brother."

"Well, I didn't think you were her older brother," she giggled, taking his height into consideration. "And what's that you've got going on with your hair? You look like a smurf," she said cheerfully. He glared at her angrily. He didn't have to take that.

* * *

"I'm Angel, by the way," she smiled. Something about her smile made him uneasy, like she could read everything about him just by looking at him. And strangely, he didn't want to run away or ignore her. Something about her interested him, made him want to stay.

* * *

"And, that should just about do it," Iggy stated after taking the new employee for two tours of the small and crowded gas station. She was such an idiot that she clearly couldn't figure it out the first time, so now, two hours later, he had finally managed to teach her the ways of the gas station.

"I didn't catch your name," he said politely, even though she had told him at least a dozen times. She seemed to be quite proud of it.

"Brigid Dwyer," she said with authority. "Don't worry, I won't' let you down!" she said, raising her hand to her head like he was a captain or a war veteran. He did the same with a bit of hesitation, then walked away awkwardly.

Over the next hour, he had her doing minor things like restocking shelves and cleaning the supply room where he handled the register. Even if he was blind, he was sure he did it better than she could. To make sure no one took advantage of him again, Max had bought him some sunglasses that covered up his clear irises, so that no one knew he was blind.

He helped a few people, most of the time just sitting around and chewing gum. Brigid seemed to be taking a particularly long time in the back room, he noted. He had only sent her in there so that he wouldn't have to talk to her, but now he was concerned that she might be hiding a TV in there or playing with an iPod instead of working.

He got up from his seat, left the register, and rounded the corner, poking his head in the back room. And boy, was he in for a surprise. The moment he entered, Brigid appeared, looking as troublesome as ever. Before he could even ask what she was up to, she had him pinned against the wall, despite her being a head shorter.

Even though she was four years younger than he was, she knew a hot guy when she saw one. And despite the sunglasses he always wore, she could see that he had a kind face and a charming attitude. Forget Fang, she had her sights set on Iggy now.

So she put her hands on his chest, pressed him against the wall and kissed him full on the mouth. He gave a muffled gasp and froze where he was, but she kept going. He was still a little stunned from being ambushed and didn't react immediately. Her fingers reached up to tangle in his hair, and he tried to think of a way to let her down easy.

He stepped forward, trying to get around her, but all she did was twist her legs so that they were around his waist and he was carrying her. With her on him like this, he had no idea where he was going. So he staggered out of the room and finally tripped and fell onto the ground. Brigid smiled at him. "Oh, Iggy, I'm so glad you feel the same way." He noticed that he had fallen on top of her.

_What have I gotten myself into? _He thought with a grimace.

* * *

Angel had managed to drag Gazzy throughout the house, showing him this and that, taking him here and there, wanting to share her life with someone. Iggy had Nudge and Fang had Max, so why shouldn't she have a friend, even if she didn't like him like that? They were in the deserted laundry room exploring the dumbwaiter when they heard footsteps.

"Crap, we're not supposed to be up here!" Angel cried, and pushed him in. "There has to be room for both of us in there! If we get caught, my mom will know I had a friend over and she'll never let me have my own life!" Gazzy didn't understand, and he didn't have a chance to ask. Because before he knew it, they were both in the dumbwaiter, and she pulled them down.

The footsteps were heard as Angel and Gazzy sat in the dumbwaiter, holding their breaths. It was two or three people, they couldn't really tell. One spoke, and Angel could tell that it was two maids up there.

"So, you'll never believe what I heard today," one said. The other casually leaned in, the silent gesture that promised not to say a word to anyone else. They grabbed the laundry out of the washer, taking it over to the table to fold the mountain of clothes. "It's about Fang. I've heard some…interesting news," she whispered.

"You can tell me," the other whispered back.

"Well…okay. You see, what we didn't know is that the other day, when _she _left to have dinner with her friends, well, he didn't exactly stay home."

"Oh, do tell," giggled the other.

"He was out with a _girl_!" she squealed. "And it gets better. He was with one of the servants from this house! No one knows who it is…yet. But there are only a few options."

"You're right," mused the other. "The only girls his age are Mallory O'Hara, Cynthia Heimmerman, Jessica Simon and Max Bachelder. It's only a matter of time before one of them comes out. Personally, my money's on Jessica."

Her friend shook her head. "You're on. Mark my words, it'll be Max Bachelder."

Gazzy and Angel exchanged nervous glances. This wasn't going to end well.

* * *

Around noon, Max was dusting the staircase, just waiting for twelve forty-five when her break came and she could grab something to eat. She had decided to let Fang sleep, because he just looked so darn cute when he did. She hadn't talked to him all day, but then, she couldn't really expect to be around him all the time if they wanted to keep it a secret. Right now, though, there was no one else around, and she wished he was there.

She turned around to dust the other side, but Fang was standing right there. She couldn't help it, her face broke into a smile. He was what she'd been waiting for the entire day. But it nearly crushed her when he came right out with it. "Max, this can't work. I can't keep this a secret from my mother for long, and I won't put your job in danger."

"W-what?" she asked, stunned. "Fang, I don't care! I don't care about the job!"

"I can't do this," he slumped into the wall. "It's just that last night wasn't right. It wasn't who I usually am. It was too open."

Max walked closer. "If you lo-like someone," she stuttered, blushing, but she didn't think she caught it, "You have to be more open with them. Being vulnerable is a chance you have to take," she said softly, knowing it applied to the both of them.

And without meaning to, she leaned in and kissed him. Even though it was like her body was doing the opposite of what her brain was telling her to, she enjoyed every minute of it. And Fang was convinced. Breaking up with Max was not something he ever intended to do.

On the balcony above them, Angel and Gazzy slapped high-fives. Little did he know that Angel had done it all. It was generally easier when you could control minds. She grinned happily. Her idiot brother didn't know what was good for him, but Max did. And Angel was there to see that it all happened perfectly.

* * *

**How was that? Realize that the last chapter was a fun, fluffy and lighthearted bonus chapter. The real story will be centered around more drama and angsty stuff -ahem- that you love. xD **

**Also, it meant so much that so many people voted in the poll on my profile to make this story happen. Now that one of my stories is ending, I'd like to do the same thing. So if you want another story like this, please vote on the poll on my profile, open until August 1st, for the pairing for the next story. Even though this one is Fax, the next one will be a less typical pairing. **

**Thanks so much! **

**~Rachel**


	8. Chapter 7

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 7 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted July 13, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 4,375 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 | Brigid - 15/ The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

* * *

Gazzy had been staring at his clock radio for seven hours. He'd never once gotten any sleep. There was a little too much on his mind. He couldn't relax until he could finally talk to Max and go back to the mansion. He smiled wryly. It was summer, he was supposed to be sleeping until ten o'clock and playing video games without a care in the world.

So much for that idea.

It had been five days since his day at that mansion. He hadn't expected enjoying being carted off with Max to her job, but he had, and being stuck at 'home' with just his dad, no friends and no television wasn't his idea of fun. To top it all off, his last lifeline, his beloved Nintendo DS, had broken and was now totally worthless.

In five days, he hadn't seen someone who he had just instinctively liked, like he had liked Angel the other day. At the end of the day, they'd said goodbye, and she'd given him a swift handshake. He was going crazy in his house all alone. He wanted to see her again. It had been so long since he'd had a real, _true _friend.

Five days ago, Max had kissed Fang. And Gazzy had enjoyed seeing her like that. Well, not making out with another guy, that made him nauseous to no end. But when she was with Fang, she just looked happy. And Gazzy missed seeing her that way. Everyone did. Everyone was worried about her.

But Fang made her happy again. Unlike Sam, who was only concerned with being cool, Fang was charismatic on the outside, charming in a dark and mysterious way. On the inside, however, it was a different story. He was just as nervous as Max was, but willing to do anything to make her happy. And that was what counted.

Rolling over again, Gazzy checked the clock. 4:56, it read. In four minutes, Max would be up from her ten minute shower and twenty minute dressing, grooming and primping session. She would make coffee, and Gazzy could finally ask her to take him with her, to take him back to the house where he knew he had someone –at least, some form of entertainment- waiting for him.

He just had to make sure that Iggy wasn't awake. If Iggy came into the kitchen and figured out that he was going with Max, Iggy would just tease him about having a girlfriend or some worthless crap. Gazzy didn't think of Angel that way…did he?

No, absolutely not. Forget being a teenage boy with raging hormones and all that. And that nitwit would turn it into something that it absolutely wasn't. Gazzy didn't necessarily think that it would be a problem…Jeb had made tomato soup last night, and Gazzy had slipped several ground sleeping pills into it before anyone saw.

The next time he glanced at the clock, it was 5:02. He slipped out of bed quietly, tiptoeing swiftly to the door, careful not to make a sound and wake up a sleeping Iggy, whose room happened to be right next door. Even if his room was the size of a shoebox, Gazzy considered it a miracle to have his own room, especially as the youngest.

The door opened soundlessly, and he slipped outside. Once he was in the hall, he shut the door with a quiet click. From the hall, he could see his father in the living room, on his usual moth-eaten chair, surrounded by large boxes. He walked into the kitchen, hearing the soft sipping of coffee. He walked right past it, grabbing a coffee mug from the cabinet and the sugar from the cabinet above it.

He walked over and grabbed the pot of coffee without glancing at whoever else was in the kitchen, walking back to his cup to pour it. "So, Max, I have to ask you something," Gazzy said slowly as he poured the coffee with his back to whoever else was in the room.

Iggy's blind eyes sparkled with mischief. So Gazzy thought he was Max. He was aware of the prank that Gazzy had tried to pull on him last night, but he had secretly switched the bowls around with his father. Not that it had worked, anyway. His father was clearly up and awake, reading the newspaper as he always did.

So Iggy was going to have a little fun. "Sure, what is it? Make it quick, though, I have to get to work soon," he said in a very Max-ish tone. He was careful, making his voice high and at the same time scratchy, like Max's got when she was sick.

Gazzy's back was still turned as he poured the sugar into the cup. "You okay, Max?" he asked, semi-worriedly. He had to admit that he was only asking because he wanted to go with her to her job.

"I'm fine, my voice was just really dry when I woke up this morning," Iggy continued, adding a slight scratchy cough for good measure. "Hence the coffee," he used the patented Max brand of sarcasm.

"Okay, okay, sheesh," Gazzy rolled his eyes. "Anyway, I was wondering if I could come with you again today, to your work, I mean."

Iggy stifled his laughter. Gazzy was obviously trying to act like it wasn't for a specific reason. It was sort of like Jeb when he tried to act 'hip'. "Oh?" he asked, a devilish grin on his face.

Gazzy reached up to the cabinet, grabbing a box of Frosted Flakes and pouring himself a bowl. "Yeah. You know, it's really boring here, so I thought I'd come with you, see if there's anything specifically fun about working as a maid."

Iggy burst out laughing, startling Gazzy. He turned around awkwardly, his face smashing into the cabinet door, which was still open. He fell to the floor, and Iggy only laughed harder. "I'm sure I could hook you up with the dress!" he chortled, hearing Gazzy slam onto the floor and moan. He didn't see what happened, but he didn't care. He had gotten the little rat.

"What are you doing up here?" Gazzy raged as he stood up, his forehead on fire from slamming into the cabinet. "You're supposed to be asleep until two o'clock in the afternoon!"

Iggy cackled. "Nice try. I switched my soup with Dad's. You're going back to the mansion to see that cute little blonde girl Max told me was Fang's sister!"

"Where would you get that idea?" Gazzy screeched, but from the look on Iggy's face, he knew that he was losing the battle. Suddenly, it dawned on him. "You say you switched your soup with Dad, right?" he whispered.

Iggy became serious. "Yeah, I did. I just assumed that it wasn't working or something. Why, is something wrong?" he asked worriedly.

"Hell, yeah!" Gazzy whisper-hissed. "Those pills are _designed _to work! They always work, so why isn't Dad dead asleep right now? You had to have slipped the bowl to someone else!"

"But the only other person in the house is…" Iggy trailed off. They both stared at each other.

"Max," they both breathed at the same time.

In an instant, Iggy had flown off his seat and was running down the stairs to Max's bedroom. Gazzy followed him in a rush. "Crap, crap, crap! I knew there was something wrong! She should have been up forty-five minutes ago!" Iggy hissed as he ran through the basement family area and around the corner into Max's room.

He pushed the door open to reveal Max, still lying peacefully asleep. She had to be at her job in another forty-five minutes. It was just a good thing that he'd caught her so early. He glanced at Gazzy and nodded, and Gazzy ran out the door, into her bathroom, to grab the cup of water she always left near the sink.

He filled it up and ran back to the room quickly, dropping all of it on to her chest, cup included. In an instant, she woke up, fury in her eyes. "What the hell are you doing-" she was cut off as she glanced at the clock, and how late it was. "What am I doing asleep at this hour?"

Gazzy grimaced. "You overslept?" he said, sweating buckets.

"Whatever," Max said, pushing her way out of the room. "I don't even have enough time for a shower. I'm going to get dressed and do my hair. Please, please, please get out." She shoved them out the door before being left alone in her room.

_Shoot. I really wanted to look good for Fang today…I haven't really talked to him in five days. I hope everything's okay. _She shook off the feeling that he didn't want her anymore, and pulled on a pair of skinny jeans and a tank top. It didn't really matter. She'd be in her maid uniform shortly anyway.

Running to the bathroom, she clamored to brush her teeth and put on some makeup. Iggy and Gazzy were left standing awkwardly in the hallway, listening to the rushed sounds coming through the small door. "You okay, Max?" Iggy called anxiously, and looked down at Gazzy, who shrugged, forgetting that Iggy couldn't see it.

"Ugh!" Max screamed, giving up on trying to straighten her hair and just fluffing it out, letting it sit in the naturally wavy way that it always did. It wasn't perfect, but it was the best she could do in twenty minutes. She walked out, practically jumped up the stairs, and pulled her black Converse on.

"Gazzy, did you do what I think you did?" his father asked sternly, and Gazzy gave a meek nod. "As I thought," Jeb said wearily. "You know she'll be too tired to function. You're going to go to work with her to make sure she doesn't fall asleep." Gazzy had to fight to contain his joy.

"You really didn't have to come with me," Max said once they were all safely in Iggy's pickup truck. "Dad always forgets that I'm stronger than you both. No offense," she cackled. "Why didn't you tell him? I'm sure you have better things to do at home." Iggy bit his lip, but still couldn't resist and therefore choked on his laughter.

"I really don't," Gazzy said. "Last time I was there, I had fun sneaking past maids and hiding in dumbwaiters, whatever they are. Oh, you turn left here, Ig."

The car leaned as Iggy turned the corner, and Max had a moment to register the thought before annoyance –that look she got for all things stupid and idiotic- crossed her face. "You did _what_?" she asked sharply.

"Relax, I was with Angel," Gazzy shrugged. "It's her house, anyway." He bit his lip. "Speaking of which, they're something I need to tell you."

"You're in love with 'Angel'?" Iggy clenched his teeth to keep from laughing.

"No!" Gazzy answered too quickly. Iggy burst out laughing.

"Whatever!" Max shooed it away, the annoyance clearly still there. "What was it that you had to tell me? Stop at this stop sign for two seconds and then go. There's no one coming, Ig." She turned back to Gazzy. "Spill it."

Gazzy took a deep breath, and the car lurched forward again. "It's about you dating Fang, Max."

Max exploded. "I don't want to hear any more of your teasing!" she spat at the both of them, fury in her eyes. "And I don't need your ridicule! If I want to date Fang, _I will date Fang_. Do I need your permission or something? I don't care if he is rich, or that sometimes he yanks me around with his suave attitude, I really like him! So butt out!" If she wasn't in the truck, they all knew she would've stamped her foot.

"It's not like you won't get your heart broken eventually," Iggy said under his breath.

That surprised both Max and Iggy. Iggy had always defended Max, always been supportive of her every decision. He was the trusting and protective older brother, who would've done anything for Max. "What?" Max let the venom slip into her voice, but Iggy remained unfazed.

"Turn left again, Iggy," Gazzy said softly, and Iggy just barely heard him, swerving left.

"He's that kind of person," Iggy said simply. "I don't like seeing you with him. He'll break your heart eventually, Max. Don't get too…attached…to him."

"He isn't a new puppy!" Max screeched. "He's my…boyfriend. Yes, my boyfriend! Like you're perfect, not telling Nudge that you have a boyfriend and then leading her on! She's a sweet girl, and _you're _the one that'll break her heart, and you're the nicest person I know!" The tears were threatening to spill from her eyes.

They pulled up to the driveway of the huge mansion, and Max opened the car door hastily, jumping out and closing the door with a thud. She didn't even wait for Gazzy as she ran inside. Gazzy saw her run away, wiping her eyes on her sleeve. "She really likes him. I know you're just trying to do the right thing," Gazzy said quietly. "You're both right, and you're both wrong. I don't know who this Nudge is, but you need to tell her."

And he jumped out of the car to follow Max. He'd never gotten to tell her that she was at risk of being discovered as Fang's girlfriend. He had heard those maids talking to Angel, and one of them had been talking about Max. Max breaking up with Fang wasn't an option. They didn't know it, but they loved each other.

Gazzy shook his head. It wouldn't happen. They wouldn't be found out. He shut the car door quietly. He didn't want to hurt Max, but he didn't want to hurt Iggy, either. Taking a few steps, they got quicker and quicker. And when he got in the door of the mansion, Angel was waiting in the doorway for him. "I thought you might be here," she said, laughter in her eyes.

Gazzy didn't understand it, but it was like there was a private joke going on. He was angry, until she grabbed his hand and pulled him inside. So he smiled in spite of himself. It was good to be home.

But back in the car, Iggy had his head in his hands, thinking. It was wrong for him to be with Nudge because he was with Ella, so that wasn't fair. But it also wasn't fair that he liked Nudge, and Ella was in the way. And he couldn't decide. He just couldn't, even if Nudge wasn't anything to him yet.

Yet.

He pulled out of the driveway, counting the seconds before he turned again, and counting the seconds before he turned again. He'd learned how to drive this way, despite being blind. He groaned when he remembered another girl that now loved him. Brigid was sure to be waiting for him when he got there.

* * *

Max walked into the back room of the mansion, to where her cubbyhole was. She pulled out the maid's uniform slowly, tilting her head back and fighting the tears that threatened to spill. Iggy was wrong, wasn't he? She…liked…Fang. But if Iggy was wrong, why hadn't she spoken to Fang in a few days? Why did she miss him, and long to see him, but he wasn't making an effort to find her?

She walked into the bathroom to change, slipping on the maid's uniform and folding her clothes into neat squares. When she walked out, she was the Max that belonged here, the Max that seemed normal and well-off but was really just a worthless piece of white trash.

And she realized again that she didn't belong here. It wasn't her world, it was Fang's. And one day, he'd undoubtedly get married to a trophy wife, someone with no personality and bags of money. It didn't matter if he wasn't happy, it was if he respected his mother's wishes.

As much as she would have liked to say that it was fine if he did whatever and screwed around with whoever, it wasn't fine. The thought of him with another girl made her sick to her stomach.

Sadly, she walked back to her cubbyhole and stuffed her clothes inside. Just as she was about to walk away, she was confronted by a maid she knew but wasn't exactly close friends with, Julie Garcia. "What do you think you're doing?" Julie hissed. "Do you know how late it is? I've been covering for you all this time! You could have been fired!"

"I know, I know," Max mumbled. "I'm sorry." She left Julie just standing there, grabbing a broom from the corner and slumping out the door. She could at least try to hide the fact that she was upset, but she didn't really care anymore. Iggy didn't know what he was talking about.

She walked into the main entrance and started to sweep the dust off the floor, not that there was really any to sweep, but she'd at least maintain the illusion of sweeping. Just when she'd swept up the tiniest pile in the history of sweeping, someone or something pinned her up against the wall. Not uncomfortably, when a pair of lips covered her own.

A protest arose in her lips, but she stifled it quickly, just whimpering, praying that whoever it was would stop. Whoever it was happened to be an excellent kisser, though. When they broke apart, her eyes widened. Fang? Sure enough, the dark boy was standing in front of her with a cocky grin on his face.

"W-What the hell do you think you're doing?" Max stared up at him, then all around her. There was no one in sight, but he still shouldn't kiss her in the main hallway. And what if it hadn't been Fang? She blushed violently. "Come with me," Fang ignored her questions and took her by the hand. She wanted to fight it, but she was mildly curious as to where he planned to take her.

They ran up flight after flight of stairs, hiding behind doors when they saw someone coming. Soon, they were on the top floor – or so she thought. But he grabbed a rope, pulled it harshly, and down came a ladder. He ushered her up, pulling it up behind them.

Max looked around. They were in the attic of the mansion. It was small, and carpeted. Cobwebs were nowhere to be seen, and some box labeled for Christmas ornaments and Halloween decorations were scattered all over. But most of all, she noticed an old-fashioned picnic basket and a checkered tablecloth on the floor. She looked up at him questioningly, but he looked down, and one corner of his mouth twitched.

She felt like she was dreaming.

"Sit," he offered, and she walked over to the tablecloth. They sat down together, and she almost smirked at the thought of someone like him sitting on the actual floor. But she had seen him crawling through vents in the restaurant, so she believed it.

In the picnic basket, she expected it to be something like caviar, but when he dug inside it, he picked out a couple sandwiches. He handed her a ham and cheese. It seemed so surreal. They were having a picnic in the attic. And strangely, she loved it. "How'd you know how to make the sandwiches?" she teased.

"Internet," he flashed her a grin.

"You know, you can't just keep sexually harassing me all the time," she muttered, and he grinned harder.

They ate slowly, sneaking peeks at one another every once and a while. The entire time, one of his hands rested protectively over hers. It was embarrassing in some part of her brain, but she didn't really care. When they finished, they leaned against the wall, his arm winding around her shoulders and pulling her closer.

And despite her pride and that voice telling her not to, she leaned her head into his chest and gave a contented sigh. She forgot all her questions, all her accusations, and leaned into him.

His arms tightened around her. He thought she didn't notice, but her heart swelled.

* * *

Nudge walked into the small gas station. She'd never been to one, and she was really just exploring the town. She'd snuck out through her window, just hoping to get a glimpse of the world she hoped to end up in one day. She hated the prison of that mansion. That was what it was, keeping her locked up and away from society.

Her hood and sunglasses were on, keeping her invisible. She walked through the gas station, hoping to grab a bottle of water or something. But when she brought the bottle of water back up to the cash register, her eyes widened beneath the sunglasses. "Iggy?" she asked, surprised.

"Who?" Iggy froze, taking one of his iPod earbuds out.

"Nudge," she said, still in shock.

"Oh, thank god," he collapsed onto the counter. "Nudge, come here." She did. "This new employee I have is driving me crazy. Her name's Brigid Dwyer, and she's insane. She keeps attacking me and she likes me. She thinks I'm her boyfriend. If you don't want your eyes ripped out from her jealousy, leave now."

And he secretly prayed that she would. He had forgotten about Nudge and Ella temporarily, but this wasn't right. He couldn't see her, not just figuratively, or even talk to her, because it would be wrong.

Nudge's eyes flashed. So Brigid had gotten a job here? She knew just how to make that blonde bitch pay. She had never liked Brigid – Brigid was just too silly, and too young for her brother. And now she was moving in on Iggy? Nudge bit her lip.

She liked Iggy. She'd liked him since she'd first seen him, because he was so natural and kind and gentle, and he lived in that outside world that she wanted to be a part of. She knew he probably didn't like her that way, but she wanted to make sure.

So she brought Iggy over to the wall next to the store room, smiling devilishly, but of course, Iggy would never know. So she pressed her back against the wall and pulled him close to her. "Call her," she whispered. "Tell her to come out here."

Iggy didn't know what to think, or what Nudge was planning. But Nudge was practically yanking on his heartstrings, so he crumbled. "Brigid, I need to talk to you," he called sweetly, knowing that would make her run as quickly as she could to see him.

"Kiss me," Nudge whispered, and Iggy's heart stopped. He didn't want to do this, but he wanted to so badly at the same time. He knew Ella was his girlfriend, she had written him letters and he had sent letters back, letters with the words _I love you_ encased in an envelope. But he ignored it, and pressed his mouth to Nudge's, as he'd wanted to for some time.

Nudge forgot all about Brigid, and their little trick to make her leave. She wound her hands around his neck and into his strawberry-blonde hair, molding herself into him and pulling him closer. His arms came around her waist, and she smiled on the inside, thrilled at his reaction. It was perfect.

Then an earsplitting scream echoed throughout the small gas station, and the couple broke apart to see Brigid standing in the doorway. She glared at Iggy as if he had stabbed her in the heart, and marched up to him, slapping him straight across the face. Iggy staggered back into Nudge, who caught him. Before they could blink, Brigid was grabbing her purse off the counter.

"I thought I meant something to you!" she screamed as she stormed out. Iggy grinned. She couldn't have been more wrong. When he looked down at Nudge, it was curiously. When that had happened, had she felt what he felt? He couldn't see her face, or her eyes, any emotion, so he assumed the negative.

Because it was better that way. Because it was safer that way.

* * *

Fang glanced at Max. She had been still for some time, leaning on his chest. He was used to silence, but for some reason, it was driving him crazy now. Just when he thought that she'd fallen asleep, she looked up at him, and he flinched, startled. She didn't seem to notice. "Fang, I've been thinking," she said, avoiding his eyes.

"Oh?" he kept his voice nonchalant and only mildly interested.

"What exactly…are we?" She asked, biting her lip.

"I'm pretty sure we're people," he answered, that telltale side of his mouth twitching again.

"You know what I mean," she mumbled. This was making her feel so insecure, something she hated. She should never have asked. She could have just enjoyed their time and kept her mouth shut, but she just _had _to open her big mouth.

While Max was having this mental battle with herself, Fang was thinking. "I mean, are we…more than friends?" Max asked. It was a stupid question, really, considering how he had kissed her earlier.

"Well," Fang began smugly, "I'd like to think…that we could be."

Max knew what she was doing. She almost groaned with frustration. He wanted her to be the one to admit that they were together, but she wasn't going to. That big chicken couldn't even say it like a man. "Are we?" Max tried again, batting her eyelashes and trailing two fingers up his arm.

"Possibly," Fang said in that smug tone that made Max want to scream in frustration.

She snuggled deeper into his chest. "Are we?" Max repeated again.

"Maybe." Fang smirked at her.

"That's it," she growled, and turned around to face him. He was almost afraid of having his head bitten off, but then she leaned in and kissed him with everything she had. He was too shocked to respond at first, but when he did, she pulled away. "More than friends?" she growled.

"Hell, yeah," he said breathlessly, then leaned in to kiss her again.

* * *

**Thanks for reading! I want it to go quickly but not too quickly, I don't want it to seem rushed. Also, the line breaks in the story that separate the scenes aren't really working on my computer, so if they sometimes appear in the wrong places, please just try to figure it out. Every time I change it, it just goes back ot the way it was. I'm sorry D: **

**Unfortunately, the poll on my lookup ended up being a tie, so we might be getting the new story a little later. Vote on the tiebreaker, no ignoring just because it's a blind poll! **

**Also - just so one things's clear - Fang and Max are the _only _ones with wings, and Angel is the only _human _who has powers.**

**Don't forget to review! ^3^**

**~Rachel**


	9. Chapter 8

****

Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 8 |

by: Rachel / Chapter posted July 25th, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 4,074 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 | Sam - 18/ The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

* * *

The next few weeks for Max were uneventful, but peaceful in a way. It wasn't boring, it was refreshing. Even though no one else knew they were going out, they knew, and that was enough. Every so often, they would have a secret 'date' somewhere in the house. Sneaking out of the house was difficult, but they managed to a few times.

Always keeping it small rather than going to fancy restaurants, Max was slowly carving him into a normal boy. All in the course of a month, he had eaten his first cheeseburger, had his first can of pop, and burped for the first time in his privileged life. He wasn't exactly normal, but they were taking small steps.

And she was loving every minute of it. Things went as usual for weeks, turning into a comfortable routine. Every time she was yelled at for coming into work late, every time she was ordered to do something, she just brushed it off. She never lost her temper or quit, and she didn't want to. This was her life now.

Fang seemed so easy to be with, simpler than anyone she'd ever known. It was like he understood her no matter what, grasping her feelings so easily. She could be herself around him. She didn't have to be guarded and strong like she was everywhere else, even at home. When she was with him, she was free.

But slowly, people were beginning to notice a change in Fang. He couldn't help it; Max was rubbing off on him, and in a good way. But there were telltale signs. He was cheerful –well, not excessively so, but he actually smiled sometimes- and more laid-back. He no longer fought with Nudge or Angel.

He was acting happier than he ever had, happier than he ever was around his family, and most of the older servants knew him too well than to believe anything else than the fact that he must have had a girlfriend. Slowly, they started to gossip, first between closed doors and then whispering to each other when they saw Fang.

He didn't notice, of course. The older servants called it the "honeymoon phase", in which the person in question is in love and therefore oblivious to anything and everything around him. He was easily distracted, and didn't hear their gossip. But letting his guard down was only his first mistake.

By the end of the third week after Fang and Max's little attic encounter, the place was absolutely buzzing with the gossip. But there were certain people who _didn't _hear the gossip. Specifically, the pretty young girls. There were at least five of them that could be considered 'suspects' and therefore weren't let in on any of it. Unfortunately, Max seemed to be one of those girls.

They were running out of time. As much as they could pretend, or convince themselves that they weren't going to be found out, it was already happening. There was going to be a time when the secret would have to come out. But the secret would be safe.

For now.

* * *

There she was, ditching lunch again. Sooner or later, someone was bound to notice that she hardly ever ate lunch anymore, always running away. She couldn't keep sneaking off just to spend some extra time with Fang, but she couldn't stop herself. They both knew it couldn't last much longer, but they'd deal with that some other time.

She'd just barely managed to escape. The other maids were always curious as to why she took her "work" so much more seriously than even her lunch, always skipping out because she "forgot to finish something", or another excuse to that effect. In a matter of three seconds, she was upstairs and pulled into Fang's closet, should someone happen to walk in.

To be fair, Fang's closet wasn't exactly small. Max had no idea why he needed such a big closet, considering that he was only a boy, and an emo boy at that. The rows and rows of hooks, hangars and shelves that most girls would die to fill with clothes were instead filled with black T-shirts, each looking the same as the next –well at least to her, anyway- and black skinny jeans. She doubted he owned a second pair of shoes.

He flicked the light switch on and gave her a look. "You can't keep skipping lunch and starving yourself just to see me." He rolled his eyes tiredly. "I _know _I'm irresistible, but I'm sure you can find something better to do than coming up here all the time." He was rewarded with a slap.

"Fang…" she paced around the closet helplessly, as she often did when she was stressed out. It was like she was trying to come up with a plan. "Fang, this just sucks," she stomped her foot like a child, and he almost laughed. Almost. "How so?" he replied, struggling to keep a straight face.

"You know how so!" she almost screeched, then clamped her hands over her mouth, suddenly remembering that they had to be quiet. "We can hardly ever get out of this house and go on a real date since your mom _owns you_, and so these are the only times we can be together! And we're going to get caught!"

"My mom does not own me," he grumbled.

"Oh, yes she does! You can't go anywhere because she has you locked up here, and you're too much of a momma's boy to do anything about it or stand up to her! So she practically owns you like a dog!" She glared at him pointedly.

He looked her in the eye. "Oh, I'm really sorry my mom is a controlling bitch. I really am. But I'm only seventeen, and to have any freedom, I'll have to wait a year and then get kicked out on my ass. And I can't stand up to her legally yet because of _the law_."

"That's not what I'm talking about and you know it," she seethed. "You can't even tell her the way you feel because you're so afraid of her and her disapproval." She didn't say any more, although she wanted to. She wanted to tell him that it wasn't fair, and that maybe he should just man up.

Suddenly, she felt like she was in way over her head, and that she liked him way too much for her own good. And if Iggy was right, she didn't know what she'd do. But she also knew that she couldn't blame for this. She had to blame someone, though, and he was the only one in the room.

"Do you _want _to talk about something? I'm sorry that I can't just walk up to my mom, tell her the truth and get you _fired_, and for no reason. Look, I'm frustrated, too, alright? Just give me a second to figure this out."

"It's gonna take more than a second," she growled under her breath. He ignored her.

She slumped against the wall, a good day turning into a troubling mess just like that. He noticed. "Come here," he said quietly, and pulled her closer. She reluctantly leaned into the hug, but she couldn't help but stay worried. Neither could he. But they were trapped in the spider web of his life.

* * *

Nudge walked into the gas station again, just as she had done every day for the past few weeks. As soon as she was inside, she took off the hood and removed the sunglasses, freeing her hair and eyes from the general disguise that was just a precaution, should her mother happen to drive by in the limousine.

Every day for the last three weeks, she'd go hang out with Iggy around noon, when the house was busy preparing her mother's meal and when everyone was distracted. She'd sneak out of her window and out to see Iggy. Neither one had forgotten about the kiss, but neither one of them had mentioned it.

"Sneak out of your window again?" Iggy asked, knowing it was her. She came in every day around this time, when it was slow. She gave him a nod, knowing that he couldn't see that either, but that he would catch it just the same. "It sure is quiet in here without Brigid. I mean, I know it's been three weeks, but seriously."

"I know. I decided I wouldn't get any more help at the risk of it being another freak. So now I'm working on my own. It's harder, but the owner said that if I was working harder, I'd get a raise." She nodded.

"Saving up to buy a new car?" she asked. Most guys had jobs like this to get selfish things. Iggy probably would have been too, if his family wasn't so poor. But as soon as she said it, she covered her mouth with her hand. "Oh, God, bad question," she chuckled, taking in his blindness.

"More like a new cell phone," he grinned. "I'd like to start small. I know what you're thinking, by the way. It is that bad. I'm just lucky you guys hired Max. She's working for all the food and supplies and bills and I'm still trying to put money away for college."

"You're going to college?" Nudge put her purse down and walked over to get a donut. "Anything specific you want to be? Hey, I'm taking this donut, by the way," she added as she grabbed one with chocolate sprinkles. "How much do I owe you?"

"Oh, just take it. Anyway, I thought about being a doctor, like my dad. I'm sort of a year late, 'cause I don't have the money, but medical school is way too expensive, so being a teacher might be possible." She smiled slightly at the thought of Iggy the teacher.

"Well, what about you? Do you have any goals, any dreams?" She could think of a few, none of which were possible. So she shook her head.

"No. When I get older, I'll still be stuck. I won't go to college because I won't need to, and I'll get one third of the money when my mom dies. I'll marry some other rich guy, and be a housewife for the rest of my life."

He smiled wryly. "Well, that sounds boring. Look, your life doesn't have to be like that. In two years, you're an adult. Remember that. She doesn't own you in two years. You can do whatever you want with your life, not what she tells you. You're too smart to be what she tells you."

Nudge gaped. "I…I have to! If I don't, she'll disown me, and I'll be all alone on the streets."

"So?" he asked. "So you'll be alone, big deal. Isn't that what you wanted, for her to leave you alone? You can do anything you want to when you're finally free from her. So why are you afraid?"

"I'm not afraid!" she protested.

"Yes, you are. You're afraid of things being different than they are now, even though you hate your life. Because when you leave, for the first time in your life, you'll be on your own. And even though you want it, it scares you to death, because no one's gonna be there to catch you if you fall."

"What's wrong with that?" she stood up and walked to the counter, looking him straight in his blind eyes. "What's wrong with wanting someone to be there? Alright, yes! Yes, I _am _scared, because I won't have any money, any options, or anyone to be with! And I'm sick and tired of my life being controlled for me, but I'm afraid!"

"Did you ever stop to think that people _would _be there for you?" he asked quietly.

"Like who?" She was furious. Who did he think he was, trying to tell her how to live her life and who to be and pretending to know anything about her life, when he wasn't the one stuck inside it? She wanted to kill him.

"Like me," he said, and all the fury went away. And heck, did she want to kiss him. But she never got the chance. Right at that moment, the door flew open, and a gun was pointed at the both of them. Nudge screamed and threw her hands up, not wanting to be shot. Iggy had no idea what the heck was going on.

He leaned forward, thinking Nudge was still there, leaned too far and smacked his head into the counter. Nudge smirked wryly. _How does it feel when it's you getting rejected? _It was then that the gun was pointed at Iggy.

The guy was tall, even taller than Iggy, and Iggy was at least six foot four. He was wearing a hood and sunglasses, unlike the cliché ski masks that most of them wore. And the gun was real, pointing straight at Iggy. "Open the cash register and give me the money." Iggy remembered the day that he was shot because he laughed. So he hesitantly opened the cash register.

"Give me the money!" Nudge had crawled away and was watching the scene from another aisle. She had to do something. If Iggy was robbed again, he'd be fired, because this would prove that a blind guy wasn't able to guard a gas station. She scrambled around with the cereal boxes, poptarts, and crackers, none of which she could throw.

She fell to her knees when she heard the gunshot and fell to the floor. When she looked up, Iggy was on the ground, and she was alone in the room with the robber.

* * *

Max was walking down the stairs after the lunch break had passed, just coming from Fang's room, when she noticed a large crowd gathered in the front hall. And one thing she had learned from working in the house was that large crowds could never be good news, because Fang's mother didn't approve of _anything_.

The first thing she noticed about the crowd was that it was only made up of the young to thirty-year-old girls, who all seemed to be interested in the two girls in the center. She slowly crept down the staircase and to the back of the crowd as silently as possible. No one seemed to notice.

Their eyes were all focused on the two in the center. Max recognized them vaguely. The first girl was Brittany Harris, one of the richest servants and a know-it-all that always showed up late and who Max knew for a fact had a crush on Fang. She seemed to be cornering a shy girl, Jessica Simon, who looked frightened and shocked.

Max didn't know about the rumors that had been circulating about Jessica. The maids in the laundry room had spread their opinions around so that everyone was led to believe that Jessica was seeing Fang. She had a pretty face, and that was all they saw. They didn't see the girl who was too shy to speak to anyone she didn't know, the girl who still wore glasses instead of contacts.

Brittany had that smirk on her face that Max normally wanted to punch off of it, the smirk that advertised the fact that she was almost as rich as Fang, and she knew it, the smirk that reminded them all that she only worked there because she was convinced that Fang would one day fall in love with her.

Jessica flinched away as Brittany turned around to face her. "You've been a bad little girl, Jessica. Going against the boss's orders and seeing Fang. Dating the employees isn't allowed here. But of course, it's not his fault that you were a little whore." And she slapped Jessica straight across the face, sending her spiraling into the wall behind her.

She hit the wall and fell to the floor, her glasses falling off her face soundlessly. Brittany's high-heeled shoe crushed it firmly, cracking the lens and rendering it useless. She was still wearing the cruel smirk to go along with the jagged, pointed shoes. "I'm not-" Jessica protested, but she was silenced.

"Shut up!" Brittany interrupted her. "People like you make me sick! Throwing yourselves when you have any right to him, especially when, if anyone was to deserve him, it would be me! I'm the one who's rich enough, pretty enough and good enough for him."

"I'm not dating him!" Jessica finally found her voice, but it was barely more than a squeak. She looked petrified with fear, although Brittany couldn't _really _hurt her. But the red mark on her cheek said otherwise. She pushed Brittany's foot away from her glasses, looking at them hopelessly.

"What are you, gay?" Brittany smirked, snatching the glasses and snapping them in half. "Oh, I guess that's what it is. You're a little lesbian, so you're not good enough for Fang." She grinned sadistically, and she was rewarded with a chorus of laughter from the other maids. Max laughed to blend in. But it killed her to laugh.

Suddenly, they heard footsteps down the stairs, and it was Anne Walker before them. Brittany stepped back into her place in the circle as Anne's eyes raked over the scene. "What's going on here?" she asked sharply. "You all have work to do, I'm sure."

"It's her, Mrs. Walker!" Brittany spoke up, pointing to Jessica on the floor. "She's dating Fang, we all know it. She's been lying this entire time." Anne's eyes flared, and Jessica looked hopelessly through the broken glasses that she had tried desperately to fix. But she had to hold the lenses up to her eyes to see.

"Miss Simon, this is very serious," Anne said sharply. "No one in this house is dating an employee. I thought I made that quite clear." Jessica just looked down. _Come on! Speak up and tell her the truth! _Max thought desperately, but she didn't make a sound. "I'm afraid the punishment for this is great. You are fired, Jessica. I didn't expect this from you."

"That's because she's a _lesbian_," Brittany hissed, and Max felt the urge to strangle the idiot of a girl. This made the rest of the servants chuckle quietly as Anne walked back upstairs. "Now, get back to work!" she said from the top of the stairs, and everyone scurried away.

Max stared down at Jessica on the floor as Anne walked away. _This is my fault. I'm getting people fired just for seeing Fang. This isn't right. I should turn myself in and tell them that Jessica is innocent. _But she remembered Iggy and his education, and her father and how he would be disappointed in her. So she bit her lip and walked away, trying to ignore Jessica's sobs.

_This is so wrong._

Nudge crouched on the other side of the aisle, knowing that the robber would try to take care of her next before going after the money. Honestly, how stupid could you be? He probably thought he already killed Iggy, too. She peeked her head around the corner, which was her first mistake. He saw her, and aimed the gun at her head.

She just barely missed the bullet that whizzed past her face as she snapped her head around and crawled away. She heard the footsteps as he walked toward her, and she just made it to aisle two before another bullet was shot at her. She cursed at herself. She needed a plan.

Rummaging in her purse, she discovered that she had a can of pepper spray and really nothing else. She clutched the can firmly in her hand, and ran around to his opposite side, hoping to sneak up on him. He saw her coming, and caught her in a choke hold so that his arm was around her neck and her back was to him. In a matter of seconds, she found herself choking.

She growled. She wasn't going to let some freak come in her and kill her, or even rob Iggy. She stepped on his foot –hard. He shouted out and struck her, but she only elbowed him in the stomach. He hunched over, letting go of her with one arm. Her arm snaked up and spayed him in the eyes with the pepper spray, the back of her foot connecting with his shin.

He fell back and hit the wall, and her left fist came up to smash into his nose. He groaned in pain and she realized she had broken it. Nevertheless, she felt no guilt as she grabbed his arm and flipped him over her shoulder, slamming on to the ground. He passed out, and the only sound in the place was her breathing.

"Mess with me, bitch," she growled, flipping open her cell phone. "Hello, 911? Some asshole just tried to rob the gas station on 13th and West Street. I think you might want to get over here. Oh, and he'll need an ambulance."

* * *

Fang found Max in the garden, watering a plant glumly. Sometimes turning invisible had its advantages, and he had seen the entire situation with Jessica. He felt terrible about not doing anything to stop it, but her family was upper-middle class, so they'd likely be fine. Max seemed much more depressed about it, though.

"She'll be fine, you know," he said casually as he appeared behind her. He was still amused that she thought that it was just his emo boy image instead of the fact that he really had special powers. But really, what was she supposed to think? That he was bitten by a radioactive spider?

"That's not the point," she answered. He went and sat farther away, so that no one thought he was actually talking to her. They were out in the open, after all. "I cost someone their job just because I wanted to be involved with you. That's selfish and wrong, and what if it happens again? I'd sooner it just be me."

"Max, you can't!" He tried to keep the desperation out of his voice. "I know it's hard, but you can't leave!" He hated how pleading he sounded. "Look, if it's me, I can change. And I'll tell my mom someday. But I just can't right now. I know I can be pushy and rude and a spoiled rich brat, but I'll try to be better, whatever you want me to be-"

"Stop. This isn't because of you. I lo-like you too much to leave." She blushed furiously at her little slip-up, although it hadn't been the first time, certainly. "The point is, I'm staying, alright?" She suddenly realized that she was face-to-face with him. And without warning, kissed her lips tenderly.

She knew she shouldn't, that the other girls were right inside and could look out the window at any time. But her arms went around his neck and pulled him closer, because he was just so irresistible. It always felt like their first kiss.

A loud cough behind them interrupted them, and they sprang apart. But it wasn't who they were expecting it to be, and Fang didn't even know who it was. "Sam?" Max asked, bewildered and highly embarrassed. The last thing she needed was for her ex to see her kissing some other guy.

"Look, can we talk?" he asked, and Max followed him a few feet away from Fang. She didn't notice him turn invisible and follow them. "Look, Max, I'm sorry for anything JJ told you. It never happened between us."

He was exactly the same as when she had last seen him. He was an inch or two shorter than Fang, with lightly tanned skin and soft brown hair. He had the most welcoming eyes and smile, and more muscles than Fang. _Why am I comparing them? Fang is my boyfriend! It's over between Sam and me! _Still, she couldn't help but be drawn to him.

They had really been serious when she had broken up with him, she thought sadly.

"Max," he grabbed her hands. "You know that we broke up because you left. I don't know who that guy is or how well you know him, but my family just moved her, so I could be with you." She gaped. "I guess what I'm trying to stay is…I want you back, Max. I love you, and I want you to choose me."

* * *

**Once again, I apologize if I made any 1st/3rd person errors, or if the line breaks weren't in the right places. These just don't work with my computer very well, sorry! I'm also very sorry to say that I will still update as often as I can, but it will be a little less, I have a very busy schedule. I tried to update this one ASAP, but I was in lake tahoe and then at my dad's for a week, so. **

**The pairing for my next story has been decided: Fang and Ella. Don't knock it til you try it, just give it a shot. If you voted, thanks. If you didn't, you suck. xD Just kidding. **

**Sam's here...what about Dylan and Lissa? Oh, they'll be here soon enough. Read and review if you hate me! xD If you love me...still review, haha. Plus, you already read it, so ya know...you're half done. **

**~Rachel**


	10. Chapter 9

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 9 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted August 1st, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,534 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 | Sam - 18/ The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

_

* * *

_

Fang's face paled. Just who was this guy who thought he could walk in and steal Max away? Technically, they were going out. By all rights, Max was his. Or at least, he would have liked to think so. But Max was staring at this guy like he was a god. And when said guy confessed that he loved her, and wanted her to choose him, he lost his cool.

And before he knew it, he was visible again, totally forgetting about his secret. All he could think about was the fact that he couldn't even remember when Max hadn't been there. She was all he could think about all day. He had _lived_ when he spent time with her, if only to learn what real life was like.

Something was screaming at him to intervene, and, well, reappearing might have been his way of doing that. But unfortunately, he happened to be right behind Max when he reappeared. Max's spinning head swiveled around to gape at Fang, who was in the natural eavesdropping pose, as if he'd actually been hiding.

She kept calm. She didn't want Sam to think anything of her being with Fang. Sam was a glimpse of her old life, the only thing she had to hold on to. She couldn't just let him go. If she could get her whole life back, her complete life back, of course she would. And suddenly, she felt terribly angry at Fang. Just for being himself and not a part of her old life.

"Fang? Do you have something you'd like to say?" Max asked politely. _I am going to rip your head off. Terrorists will be taking notes, and serial killers will cower in fear. You. Are. Dead. And when you're finally dead, I will resurrect you just to kill you again! _

"Um, no. Just, get back to work," he ordered, like she really was just another servant. He walked inside, fading back into that silent person he'd been for so long. But as much as he tried, he just couldn't. Max had changed him. He needed that silent version of himself to reappear. The silent one wouldn't have just stood by and let it happen.

Max turned back to Sam, still incredibly irritated at Fang, and more homesick than she'd ever known. She wanted to go back. But she reminded herself that you can never just take a step backwards. That was impossible. If she would be with Sam now…everything would be different.

"Who was that guy?" Sam asked hesitantly. The real question in his mind was _why the hell was he kissing you_ but he'd take what he got. And he'd known when he came back that Max might have moved on. After all, it had been a couple of months since she left. And he knew that things changed.

Max quickly thought of a lie. "He's just my boss's bratty son," she rolled her eyes, and it wasn't incredibly false. "He keeps stalking me and sexually harassing me." Sam raised an eyebrow. "But, you know, not like _that_. Just, stuff like what you just saw." She looked down at her feet.

"Is there anything between you two that I should know about?" he asked. "Look, Max, I didn't come to tear your life apart. I came to put it back together, to see if there's still a chance. I stopped by your house and asked your dad where you worked, and he sent me here." _Great, when Gazzy and Iggy find out, I'll never hear the end of it_, she thought bitterly.

"But, if you want me to leave, I'll go," he added.

"No!" Max's hand shot out and caught his wrist, though he made no move to leave. She immediately yanked it away and smoothed her dress, embarrassed. "No, I want you to stay. It's just…just…"

_Just what, Max? _asked that snide voice inside her head. She'd always had it. Well, ever since she was two years old. It didn't seem like a conscience, because it always spoke in a male voice with no expressions, but she just pretended that it wasn't there. _Just that you have a boyfriend? Just that this guy went after your friend right after you left? Just what, Max? _

She internally snarled, but sighed on the outside. "Sam…I need to know exactly what happened between you and JJ. You say it was nothing, but right after my brother got _shot _and was in the hospital, she called and told me that you were together." _Great, Max. Play it subtle, _the voice teased.

"Max, nothing happened," he grabbed my hands. "I thought…because you were best friends…that she might be like you. It was a horrible thing to think, but I just missed you, and we couldn't be together because you moved here. But there's not another you, anywhere." _Oh, that's a shocker. This one's slow, isn't he, Max? _the voice remarked.

"Look, do you remember what we were talking about before you left?" he asked, and she blushed. Of course she knew. They had been talking about getting married when they both turned eighteen, even though it was a tacky thing to do, that got the whole town thinking that he got you pregnant.

"Max, I still want that to happen. And it…it doesn't have to happen right this second. I just want to tell you why I'm here. I wouldn't be here if I wasn't serious about this. I don't want to mess around. I love you." And I felt an anxiety in the pit of my stomach. This wasn't where I was supposed to be.

"S-Sam…I need some time to think about this…I mean, this is a big decision," she stammered.

"I figured you would," he nodded. "And you can take all the time you need. You know how to call me if you need to." And before she knew it, he was gone, walking back down the driveway. She collapsed onto the bench behind her.

If Sam could make everything better again, get her out of poverty, and even marry her, why was she feeling so hesitant, almost like she didn't want to be with him? There was certainly nothing standing in her way except…Fang. But if she quit her job here, she'd never see him again.

_But…would that be right? _she wondered helplessly.

* * *

A few days later, Nudge decided that enough was enough. She had stopped going to see Iggy ever since the police had stopped by and asked what happened and who she was. She was afraid that her mother would find out where she'd gone, and punish her by never letting her out of her sight. But nothing strange had happened, and she was going out.

She opened her window like she always did, and crawled out easily onto the tree right next to it, which was convenient in so many ways. She shut the window again, and crawled down the tree, dropping to the ground. It was a pain to wear the heavy disguise in the summer, when it was boiling hot outside, but it had to be done.

As soon as she was on the ground and out of the sight of the gardeners, she ran for it, cutting through the neighboring yards and finally getting as far as she could from the house. She ran down countless streets making turns here and there. After that, she followed the highway road until she saw that familiar crummy-looking gas station.

And she smiled. Because she wanted to be back. Because three days of not seeing him seemed like an eternity, and because she really liked spending time with him for some odd reason. Maybe it was because he was always encouraging her and respecting her, liking her for who she was. Something that had never really happened before.

She walked in the front door, and relief flooded through her when she saw Iggy standing at the cash register, just like he always was. He had the sunglasses on and was flipping through a magazine, and she saw that he'd gone to lots of trouble to make sure people didn't know he was blind.

"Hi, Iggy," she smiled, and he looked up, putting away the magazine.

"Nudge, you're back." She liked the way he smiled when he said it. She nodded. "I thought I'd start coming back, since I figure it's safe for me to come out of the house now. But how are you doing? Is your arm better than it was a few days ago?"

"Oh, yeah, it doesn't even really hurt anymore. The bullet just barely scraped it, you know. It wasn't last time when I got shot in the shoulder. God, this place is a death trap. Just being in here takes bravery. So why is this all of a sudden your favorite hang-out place?"

"You're here," she answered truthfully, and she thought she detected a blush on the pale boy's face. "What?" We're friends, aren't we?" _Well, after that kiss, I'd normally expect us to be more than friends. _But that had been just for show, to get Brigid to leave. But she wasn't going to give up.

"Yeah, friends," he said absently, and thought of Ella. Was it really fair to lead Nudge on like this?

* * *

Max stomped into the house, trying not to let her rage show but failing miserably at it. The main lobby was very crowded, and she was instantly bombarded with questions from Julia. "Where were you after Jessica got fired? Where did you go?" she asked anxiously, and Max took a deep breath.

"Just outside. My old boyfriend's back in town. Look, this isn't a good time. I'm just going to go upstairs and fix the beds alone, okay?" she asked, and Julia nodded, still believing that pack of lies. She was going to find Fang, that bastard.

She walked through the hall until she came up to his room, and knocked politely on the door. It opened a few seconds later. "Oh, it's you," he said blandly, and closed it again, leaving her standing there. She rolled her eyes and opened it on her own, following him in. "I need to talk to you," she growled.

"You are talking to me," he pointed out. "Look, what the hell was that about? Batting your eyelashes and kissing his ass when the truth of it is, he found someone only a couple weeks after you left. He's a lying bastard, and you just don't want to believe it. So why are you acting like this?"

"Why am _I _acting like this?" she almost screamed. "Why were you listening to _my _conversation with my ex-boyfriend? That is none of your business! You don't own me, Fang!" He glared.

"Look, Max, why didn't you tell him we were dating? He's asking about taking you back, and you didn't defend us when you had the chance. What part of breaking up with you doesn't he understand?"

"He only broke up with me because I was leaving!" she said, exasperated. "And now he's here! So what was I supposed to think? Gee, shoot me for actually wanting part of my old life, and wanting some comfort, which I never get around here!"

"Max, _this _is your life now! He can't bring your old life back for you! He can't fix past mistakes, and he can't bring back your mom!" He touched her shoulder, but she flinched away. "God, why are you doing this? He's over, and you and I are going out! So make up your mind!"

"You've never said that!" she hissed. "I had to fight you to get you to admit that we were 'more than friends'. But you've never straight-out said anything like that, barely even confessed that you liked me, and I don't want to have to keep my 'boyfriend' a secret from the world. Do you know how hard that is?"

"Max-"

"No! Just save it! I was wrong to come up here. We're done, Fang. I don't care if you fire me. You know why? Because Sam actually told me that he _loved _me, and asked me to _marry _him. I've made my decision. So, goodbye."

She was crying when she ran out the door.

He groaned and slumped against the wall. _. _

_I loved him. _

_I lost her. _

_

* * *

_

Nudge didn't know why he'd just suggested to a walk in the park across the street. She hadn't understood when he switched the open sign to closed, and grabbed her hand, but she thought it was a good sign, something to look forward to. So she laced her fingers through his, and followed him across the busy street, but he didn't get hit by a car.

In a matter of seconds, they went from a boring and grey gas station to a beautiful park. It wasn't beautiful like their garden at home, with the flowers and the gazebos and elegant benches, but it was beautiful with trees that stretched up to the blue sky, wildflowers, green grass and untamed hedges.

She followed him, and he seemed to know exactly where he was going, that was the funny thing about him. They walked in silence for a few minutes, just listening to the quiet. Finally, Nudge felt two hands cover her eyes. She started to protest, but he interrupted her. "Just listen. Forget that you can see." And she did.

She heard the birds chirping, and the soft rustling of the leaves on the trees. She heard the wind whistling around her, almost silent. She heard the soft chatter of people around her, and the sound of the swings in the park creaking as a child was pushed by a parent. She heard Iggy's breathing, and she heard her own heartbeat.

A few seconds later, Iggy removed his hands, and she felt emptier. "That's how I see," he said quietly. And she would have liked nothing more than to throw her arms around him and pull him closer. But she remembered her reserved attitude, and tried to enforce it.

It was no use. She found herself hugging him anyway. And a startled Iggy couldn't help but smile. She bit her lip. "I like you, Iggy," she admitted, and he groaned internally. "I have for a while now. And I know that I must seem like a stuck-up, spoiled brat to you, but…"

"Stop," he growled. "Don't say that. You're a good person. You have the biggest heart, and even though you talk more than anyone I've ever known…ever…you're still the best person I know. So don't say it's your fault that I haven't tried to kiss you or hold you since then." She blushed scarlet. He was referring to that time with Brigid.

"Nudge, I haven't been entirely truthful to you. I like you, a lot more than you think. But we just…we can't. I'm not in college because I don't have the money, but I have a girlfriend back home, and she's waiting for me. I can't do this to her, and it's killing me to do it to you." He looked down. He just wanted to crawl away.

"You could have fooled me," she whispered, and took off running, trying not to cry. She bit her lip, but the tears came anyway. She put back up the hood and sunglasses. Her mother was right. Nothing good could come of being outside her house, where things never changed and hearts were never broken.

No one had the nerve to speak to Max the next few nights. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't feel good about her decision, not when she had given up someone like Fang. She didn't even know what it was about him that made him so special. All she knew was that he'd made it even worse by not firing her. Would she honestly have to be reminded of her mistake every day?

She went straight to sleep without talking on those nights. She had called Sam to tell him, and she was seeing him the next day. She thought that it would make her happy. But when the next day came, and she was with him, she didn't feel any difference. Of course, the voice in her head kept butting in. It had always been silent with Fang.

She suffered through dinner with his parents, who were saying all sorts of nice things about how wonderful their wedding would be and how they would all be happy. But she wouldn't be happy. The wedding wouldn't be for another year, likely, but it was with a heavy heart that she nodded and smiled through it all.

After that, he dragged her to a movie. Of course, it had to be one of those sappy romance movies, which Max was never a fan of, but Sam had insisted that it would put her mind at ease and get her in a good mood. He was dead wrong. Max wanted to vomit through all of it, and it was even worse when he held her hand.

He wrapped an arm around her shoulder, hugging her closer. But she wasn't sure that she wanted to be closer. She was afraid of being with anyone else but Fang. Fang should be the one next to her, wrapping his arm around her and reassuring her that everything would be okay.

Fang. When the couple on the screen kissed, it only made her miss Fang more, and the way he treated her. He wasn't careful with her, didn't treat her like a Ming vase like Sam did. He respected her for who she was and saw her for her true self, as a person and not the fact that she wore a dress.

When the couple on the screen embraced, it only reminded her of how Fang had held her close in that attic, how she had finally got him to admit that they were more than friends. And she shouldn't have expected any more or any less from a boy that didn't show his feelings to _anyone_, making her the exception.

And when the couple on the screen finally fought and split up, being the climax of most romantic comedies, her heart broke all over again, because she wasn't watching the movie, she was thinking of the worst possible mistake of her life, letting him go. She hadn't realized it, but at some point or another, he'd become her world.

As he was dropping her off, he tried to kiss her. But she didn't want anyone other than Fang to go there, and she pushed him away. His hurt look didn't affect her. "I'm sorry," she shook her head. "But…I'm already in love, and not with you. You were in my past. And I don't love you anymore."

He looked at her, and he saw the truth in her eyes. He was losing her. And even though it hurt him, he knew that it was going to make her happy, and in reality, that was all he'd ever cared about. He bit his lip, ignoring the stabbing pain in his heart, knowing that it would ease with time.

"Then, take care of yourself," was all he said as he smiled at her, and he was surprised to find that the smile wasn't forced. He had to let her go. "But tell that guy…that he's lucky to have someone like you." Little did he know that 'that guy' had known, and considered himself lucky every day.

He let her go. And she gave him one last hug, saying goodbye to the life she had known, as she watched him drive away. But she bit her lip, trying to stop the smile that she felt in her heart from coming out. She opened the door, and without a word to Iggy and Gazzy, who had witnessed the whole thing, she grabbed her jacket off the hangar.

"Can you drive me?" she asked Iggy helplessly, and he smiled, catching her in a hug. She smiled. He'd finally accepted Fang. She looked up at Iggy, knowing what he was thinking about. "I know you'll make the right decision," she said, thinking of both Nudge and Ella.

They got in the beat-up pickup truck, and they got there in one piece. When she was ready to get out, she looked back at Iggy hesitantly. "Go get him," Iggy smiled. And that was all it took. She watched the car back out of the driveway, and crawled up the tree that she knew was right next to Fang's window.

And looking in, she saw him there, lying on his bed and staring up at the ceiling. And she should have known. She'd been doing the same thing all that time. So when she lightly tapped at the window, and he looked up, she shouldn't have been surprised when she smiled. He opened the window and looked at her.

He didn't yell at her, didn't preach at her, didn't give her an "I told you so". He simply opened the window wider and helped her inside. And when she was finally in his arms, he leaned down to her ear. "Welcome back," he whispered.

* * *

**Thanks for reading! I hope you all like me now! I'd like to thank **_smartiful, skyrunner27, Puppybluie, _**and **_IGGYSlover_** for threatening to kill me in their reviews! Seriously, I love you all. xD I actually got 'sharpen a stick and chase you with it', 'throw rocks at you' and 'kill you' repeatedly. :D Why does that make me so happy?**

**I'm VERY sorry if there are any spelling or grammar mistakes, but I swear to god, my computer is a piece of crap. Whatever your computer is, mine is your computer's GRANDFATHER. I type really fast on a slow computer, so I usually make spelling mistakes and grammar errors. I do NOT read the chapter over, because if I don't, you get faster updates. That's just how it is. **

**I also put up a new story (from the poll that some people voted on) called _The Other Side_. So check it out! **

**Review for the love of poking people with pointy objects! 8D **

**~Rachel**


	11. Chapter 10

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 10 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted August 13th, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG-13 / 3,782 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13/ The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

* * *

Max smiled to herself as the autumn air blew her hair away from her face. The sun shone brightly down on her hair. It was the perfect day for walking to work, even if she had gotten up early. As always, Gazzy followed her, practically glowing with anticipation. Maybe it wasn't healthy that Angel was his only friend, but he enjoyed it, and that was all that mattered.

It had been a few weeks since the incident with Sam. He was still in town, as far as she knew, but she hadn't seen him anywhere around, and she wasn't looking forward to an awkward moment in the grocery store when they met again. She knew it would happen again.

She grabbed Gazzy's hand. He looked at her curiously, but she only smiled. And eventually he smiled, too. It was good to have his sister back, the sister that he remembered. She had changed a lot since she had started working for Fang. He hadn't been the only one to change. She'd changed for the better, too.

As they turned into the big driveway of the house and started to walk up the driveway, Max noticed one particular thing. Anne Walker was sitting on the front porch and watching her with a hawk's eye. But she'd never seen Gazzy; no one knew about him except for Angel, because he was always hidden away.

Max knew as well as she did that no one was allowed in the house besides the family and the servants, and that if she was caught bringing anyone along, she would be fired. She distinctly remembered a middle-aged woman being fired for bringing her children in when the babysitter was sick. She was fired on the spot.

She cringed as she walked onto the porch and felt Anne's eyes raking over Gazzy. She bit her lip silently. After three minutes of agonizing torture, Anne finally spoke. "Max, what is _this_?" she asked, not even bothering to look down at Gazzy, who gave an indignant huff. Max pointedly elbowed him.

And then she remembered something she'd learned from one of the other servants. As a child, Anne had been diagnosed with juvenile dermatomyositis, which was a disease that affected both the skin and other muscles, which could cripple a person if not treated. It caused severe weakness in the hands and joints, so strong that those diagnosed with it would have trouble opening pens and walking up stairs.

So she made up a lie on the spot, something that would get Anne not only to warm up to her, but to allow Gazzy inside the house. "I'm so sorry, Ms. Walker," she said in a sorrowful tone, "But I have to take my brother everywhere. Ever since we moved into town, Gazzy's been dealing with his dermatomyositis. And today, my father has a job interview."

She smiled to herself as she saw Anne's stare weaken, and a smile spread across her face. "Max, why didn't you tell me that he had this disease? I had it, too, as a little child, you know." A worried look crossed her face. "Terrible, what it does. Does he have a doctor?"

Max contorted her face into a frown, lying through her teeth expertly, as she'd been doing for years. She was delighted to find that she hadn't lost her touch, and she didn't regret it one bit. For the evil, it was always worth it to cheat them. "We had health insurance, but it's difficult paying for the medications, as my father is no longer a doctor."

Gazzy was laughing maniacally in his head. They might just be able to swindle the prison warden out of a few bucks. And every penny that was going into Iggy's college fund was a precious one. He remained silent through it all, doing his best to look pathetic and weak, slouching a little for good measure. And boy, was Anne buying it.

"For God's sake, Max, if anything like this happens again, don't hesitate to tell me," she said sympathetically. "I always allow exceptions for medical reasons, maternity leaves and everything." _Lie_, Max thought smugly, nodding her head. "Thank you," she said humbly.

"No, no, don't leave yet," Anne stopped her. "Expect a raise in your salary, Max. I promise we'll help him find a cure." Max had to fight the grin that was coming. Gazzy offered an angelic smile at her, and how could she resist? She crumbled. "Take care, you two," she nodded, and walked off toward the garden.

Once inside, the two slapped high-fives. "You were awesome, Gazzy!" Max whisper-hissed, picking him up and spinning him around, even though he weighed a good twenty pounds more than she did at his age. "She didn't suspect a thing! And that smile of yours, man, did that throw her off the edge or what?"

"You were the awesome one," Gazzy smirked. "Little miss 'oh dear, my poor brother has a mortal illness'!" He gave her one last hug, but stopped dead in his tracks when he heard a voice behind him.

"Gazzy, Gazzy, Gazzy," Angel smirked. "Someone's getting coal in their stocking next Christmas," she laughed, and he sighed with relief. "Hey, Angel," he said, and she ran over to hug them. Max chuckled with amusement at how red his cheeks became when she started making kissy faces behind Angel's back.

"I can see you, Max," Angel said without looking back, and Max cursed mentally. _Mind reader, I forgot about that. I'll be talking to Fang about that later. _"Dang, forgot," she said, ignoring Gazzy's look of confusion. "Guys, I have to get into my uniform and clean Fang's room. See you later."

"Good, it really needs a good cleaning," Angel wrinkled her nose. "Bye, Max," she waved cheerfully. She turned back to Gazzy quickly. "Alright, so what do you want to do today? Game room, or home theater?" But she knew before he answered. _I so love being a mind reader_, she smirked.

* * *

Standing on her toes to get to the top of the blinds, she ran the feather duster along the top row, clearing off the mountains of dust. His room obviously hadn't been cleaned in years; most people would have been too scared. But she'd managed to turn the mess into an actual living space.

She'd gathered countless shirts that had only been worn once into three piles, some that hadn't been particularly fun to gather. The bed had been made, the closet had been organized, and the bathroom had been scrubbed until it sparkled. Fang was under the bed sorting out various knick-knacks that had piled up over the years.

Once the blinds had been properly dusted, she opened the window and let the soft breeze flow into the room, and she was surprised at just how cool it was. She inhaled deeply and walked over to an old bookshelf and began to straighten all the useless magazines.

"I can't believe summer's already half over," she mumbled, but that wasn't what she was thinking of. _I can't believe I've known Fang for almost two months. It feels like…forever. What would life be like without him? _She shuddered. Neither of them wanted to think about the summer ending and school starting. Fang would be homeschooled, and Max would be a senior in high school.

They'd hardly ever see each other. Of course, she'd come after school every day, but she was hoping that by the end of the summer, Iggy would be in college and that her dad would have a job. And if that happened, there would be no reason for her to come. She just wouldn't be able to find the time.

But she would have preferred not to ruin a good day with that thought. So she pushed it out of her mind. "I guess," Fang muttered from under the bed, as he continued to rummage through all of his old stuff. "When it was just me alone, the days went a lot slower. There just wasn't anyone to talk to."

She shrugged. "What about your sisters? They seem entertaining enough. I would think that the days couldn't go slow enough." Max thought on it. She'd always wanted a sister, but Gazzy came, and her parents had stopped having children. Come to think of it, it was a good thing they had. Another child would be another mouth to feed, as horrible as it sounded.

"Are you crazy? I didn't want to hang around for their insane psycho-babble of shoes and outfits. I stayed in my room." He sighed. "I don't really have a close-knit family, alright? I've never just sat down and talked to Nudge at all. I feel like I hardly know her. And Angel…sometimes she gets _too _close." She knew what he meant. There were days when she could practically feel Angel reading her mind.

"Fang?" she asked as she dusted the top shelf of the bookshelf. He brought his head out from under the bed, noticing the serious hint in her voice. She was up to something. "What?" he asked warily, cocking one eyebrow.

"Oh, never mind," she brushed it off, shrugging lightly. Fang didn't buy it. Max didn't just let things go. "What is it, Max?" he asked again, genuinely curious. He knew what she was doing. She was brushing it off in that annoying way that only made him more interested. She smirked to herself.

"Well…how would you like to see the way a real family works?" she asked, cleaning the dust off an old picture frame and smiling at the sight of a roughly eight-year-old Fang holding an infant Angel.

"Alright, Max, you have my attention," he said cautiously. "What do you mean by 'the way a real family works'?" And she had him right where she wanted him. She poked her head around the bed carefully to face him.

"Well, the thing is, Fang," she said evenly, avoiding his eyes, "I know your family extremely well, considering that I work for them. And, well, you have absolutely no idea what my family's like. You've never met my brothers, or my dad, and you've never been inside my house."

"Get to the point, Max," he ordered, and she almost chuckled. "Fang, we've been dating for almost two months. How bad would it be if for just one night, you snuck away and came over to my house?" She immediately looked away. _Shit, what did I just do? This is it. He's going to kick me out on my ass. _

He pondered the thought for a minute. "You're right," he said eventually, and she almost fell over from shock. "No, I'm serious. And I do want to know them." _Especially if I plan on keeping this relationship alive into the fall. _"But when would I get over there?"

"Well…how about tomorrow night?" she asked shyly. "Iggy's making supper. Yes, I know he's blind, oh the irony, blah blah blah. But I figure you could just sneak out and have your sisters cover for you like you always do." He nodded.

"Sounds like a plan." She smiled at him. He didn't want to tell her how much he loved her, or even that he loved her. It was just too soon. He knew they were only seventeen, but maybe someday when he didn't have his family to worry about…when it was only her, then-

He sighed. Was this what she really wanted? Did she regret choosing him? Max didn't know it, but she'd given up the opportunity to be with, even marry, a non-mutant boy, someone that could have supported her until death and given her everything she wanted.

So he made himself a promise. He'd never hurt Max. Not as long as he lived. He'd be everything she could ever want, any person she wanted him to be. He'd do anything for her and go anywhere for her, even give her up if she wanted him to. But he couldn't stand to see her hurting again.

He'd be there for her, wings or no wings, whatever it took.

* * *

"Smells good, Iggy," she smiled as she walked upstairs, seeing her dad reading the newspaper and Gazzy pressing buttons on his Gameboy like a maniac. He flashed her a grin. "Could you set the table?" Iggy asked, and she nodded, grabbing some napkins. She cleared off a spot on the table and set five places.

She walked over to the front door and looked out the window, feeling oddly like she was peeping even though she was on the inside. Jeb cast her an annoyed glance, and she backed off. "Just who is that boy? And why, exactly, is he sneaking out of his house to see you?"

"Long story," Max mumbled, keeping her eyes on the window and smoothing her shirt for the hundredth time. "Look, can you guys please try not to act…well….like you usually do? Just for tonight?" Her voice was pleading. "I just don't want to scare him off!"

"Max, he's seen you early in the morning. If he could possibly be scared off, he would have run long before now," Iggy said from the kitchen. She growled and went back to the window. "Look, are you sure that Fang's the kind of guy that eats ribs? Won't he, like, stick his pinkie finger out?" he chuckled.

"Shut up," Max snarled, and whirled around when the doorbell rang. She waited two seconds before walking calmly to the door and opening it, ignoring the butterflies in her stomach. Would he run out screaming? You could never tell until the end.

"Hi," Fang said casually, glancing around the small living room. His head was less than a foot away from the ceiling. He looked over at Gazzy, who waved. Fang remembered seeing him once or twice with Max. His eyes then traveled to the kitchen, where they lingered on the blind boy who was cooking like an expert.

Max pulled Fang over to Jeb. "Uh, Fang, I'd like you to meet-"

"Her father," Jeb interrupted before she could finish, and she stepped away awkwardly as Jeb stuck out his hand. Fang took it, and Jeb shook it harshly. Max winced as she heard Fang's arm crack, but he didn't falter. "Very nice to meet you, sir," Fang said calmly.

Jeb released Fang's arm slowly. "Oh, God, what the hell is _that_?" Fang shouted, his eyes growing round as he stared at whatever was behind Jeb's head. When Jeb's head turned around to see what Fang was yelling about, Fang grabbed his arm and shook out his hand, feeling to make sure nothing was broken.

"Heh, must have been his imagination," Max elbowed Fang pointedly. "Um, let's all eat dinner now. Is it about ready, Ig?" he nodded from the kitchen and started loading up the plates. Fang couldn't figure out what it was that smelled so delicious. It was some kind of meat, most likely.

Jeb and Gazzy sat down first, quickly followed by Fang and Max. Iggy was over in seconds, passing around plates. For the life of him, Fang couldn't figure out any of it. He recognized some kind of chopped potatoes and the water, but the meat was definitely new, some kind of long cuts of an animal with bones sticking out each end.

"Alright, let's eat," Iggy ordered, and without so much as a quick prayer, they all immediately dug in. Jeb had never been especially big on saying grace ever since his wife had died, so they ate in silence. It was about three minutes into the meal before Max realized something very important.

"Fang, why aren't you eating?" she asked, glancing at a confused Fang, who was poking the meat in question, trying to figure out how to eat it. Iggy flashed Max his best I-told-you-so look, and she slapped her foreheads. "Okay, Fang. Step one: you pick up the bones on the ends like so," she demonstrated. "Step two: take a big chomp out of the meat. Chew, swallow, and repeat."

He glared at her. "I knew that," he grumbled, and glanced back at the meat. He eventually picked up the bone with two of his fingers and sniffed the meat cautiously. By now, the entire table was observing his behavior, with the exception of Iggy. And slowly, he took one small bite.

Instantly, he forgot all about feeling of being stared at like a zoo animal. "This is amazing!" he practically shouted, and Max just rolled her eyes, but she was smiling.

The rest of dinner went better than she would have expected. Fang made jokes, chattered –chattered!- with Iggy, and made it clear to Jeb that he loved Max and wasn't planning on leaving her any time soon. He thought Jeb didn't notice, but he saw how Fang sat with an arm protectively around Max, always having her close to him, as if daring someone to hurt her.

Iggy still didn't completely trust him. He didn't hate him as he had, but he knew that Fang was probably going to leave her at some point. If history had taught him anything, it was that a good thing didn't last forever. And he thought of Nudge. Would he ever see her again?

Jeb and Gazzy saw something in Fang that changed their opinions of him. They saw the spark that Max had inside her, the same strength that Max had gotten from going through pure hell in getting those wings of hers, a personality that told the story of a battle. But Max was the only one of her kind, the only human with wings.

When dinner was over, Fang washed dishes with Max, getting his hands dirty –or clean- and doing some manual labor. Without a working dishwasher, it was all done by hand, sadly for him. "They grow up so fast," Iggy sniffled at the idea of Fang washing dishes. He was promptly splashed with the soapy water.

"Alright, we're going down to my room. Try not to need me," Max joked, already dragging Fang down the stairs. "Hey, wait a minute," Iggy called after them, and their heads swiveled around to face him. "You crazy kids _are _playing it safe, right?" He chuckled as Max turned five shades of red and Jeb almost had a heart attack.

Once they were safe in her room, Max flipped on the light switch and started straightening things up. Fang observed the small room, hunching over slightly to get through the doorway. There were less boxes now that they had been moved in for a few months, and you could actually see the floor. He flopped down on her bed easily.

"I know, I live in a shoebox," Max moaned, piling boxes in a small corner of the room. "But at least I'm separate from the rest of the house." She blushed immediately after saying that, and Fang grinned. A blushing Max had been a secret fetish of his for some time.

"No, I kind of like it," he chuckled. "It's cozy." She punched him, and he laughed harder. He didn't notice how nervous she was getting.

When she was about ten, she'd gotten "the talk" from her mom, and she still beat her head against the wall every now and again when she thought of it. But she was seventeen now, and the reality of Iggy's little joke was sinking in. If she loved Fang like she thought she did, then why was she so nervous?

She noticed that Fang had grown silent again. What was he thinking about? The same thing that she was worrying about, or something else? It was agonizing. His expression was always so unreadable. It always drove her crazy. What she wouldn't give for Angel's ability. She _needed _to know what he was thinking.

As if in answer to her question, he pulled her closer into a hug, and she wondered if he could hear her heart beating like a jackhammer in her chest. He didn't say anything, just buried his face into her hair and inhaled, and his arms tightened around her, like they always did. Why did it feel different this time?

"I love you," he whispered, and her heart almost stopped. "You know that, right?" he looked down at her. She couldn't breathe. His voice was deeper for some reason. More intense. And she felt herself nod. Somewhere inside, she'd known. And he must have known the same thing about her.

But she didn't admit to it. She didn't know why, but she couldn't find the right words for it. It wouldn't mean a much if she said anything. So without words, she told him that she loved him, too. Silently, she looked up at him and pressed her mouth to his. The kiss was slow, but building.

In seconds, her fingers tangled their way into its hair, one of his hands resting on her waist and the other on the back of her neck, pulling her closer. She twisted around so she was facing him, and he held her protectively against him in that way she had grown to love. "I love you, too," she whispered, though she knew she shouldn't have.

And suddenly, she was struggling to undo the zipper to his jacket, eventually just ripping it off and throwing the jacket across the room somewhere. If he noticed her strength, he didn't say anything. He forgot about the slits in his thin T-shirt, forgot that she could feel his wings as she struggled to pull his shirt up as he fumbled with her sweater that her father was so intent on her wearing – for a reason.

When she was freed from the sweater, so were her wings. And strangely, she couldn't bring herself to care. She let herself fade into a world where she didn't care if he felt her wings, if he saw them. But his eyes were closed as his lips moved in sync with hers. The only sound in the room was their shallow breathing.

Her hands reached up to his shoulders, and his hands were on her waist, holding her there as she worked her way under his shirt to his back. And if he hadn't been holding her there, she would have fallen over from shock. Under her fingers, she could feel soft feathers poking out of his back, in the exact same place hers did.

But he never noticed. Because his hands had felt around to her back, and were running over the smooth tawny feathers that poured out of the small creases where feathers met skin. Her heartbeat quickened, if that was possible.

"Max-"

"Fang-"

_Oh, snap. _

* * *

**Thanks for reading! I tried to make it as T-RATED as possible, but admit it, we all love the Fax xD People, notice the PG-13 at the beginning of this chapter. From now on, that will be the alert. Now, many of you were asking when the wings would be revealed. _Well, I have done it! :D _Wait no longer! **

**Also, at the beginning of the chapter, I mentioned the disease "juvenile dermatomyositis". I am shamelessly admitting it - I totally used my own illness. That's right - I was diagnosed when I was six, I had it for seven years, and now I'm in remission. Yea, it's a real disease. I DIDN'T JUST MAKE ONE UP! **

**Sorry for the lack of updates, I know you all want to kill me D: In the reviews for the last chapter, the Awesomest Death Threat Award goes to IGGYSlover. And yes, that is an official title. XD **

**Woo, cliffhanger~ Review if you hate me ^^**

**~Rachel**


	12. Chapter 11

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 11 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted August 19th, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,510 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 | Ella - 19/ The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

_

* * *

_

"Max-"

"Fang-"

She stared back at him, shocked. Her first thoughts were a mix of wonder and surprise. How had he managed to hide this from her? But she already knew. She'd hidden it every day from Fang, for almost two months. And her second thoughts were that she should have seen it coming. And she had. She'd just been afraid to admit it to herself.

But Fang was a different matter. For a period of two months, he'd considered her human. At first, it didn't matter, because she was just going to be another in a series of maids. But to him, she'd become more than that. He'd been agonizing over when to tell her, or when she'd find out on her own.

And it was a big shock on both sides when you were about to take a relationship to the next level, only to find out that said person had wings. But it was true. Max's tawny wings fanned out behind her, and Fang's just barely stood out in the darkness of the room.

It wasn't a question of betrayal. Max didn't have to ask why he hadn't told her, because she already knew that she knew what it was like, and she had done the same thing. Each had kept the secret to protect the other. But no one had expected this.

_Fang. Wings. Secret. Afraid. Wings. Hidden. Fang. The School. Wings. Fang. Wings. _The silence seemed deafening in the small room as reality came crashing down. It wasn't a dream, a surprising and terrible dream. She didn't feel relief that she wasn't the only one. She wanted things to go back to the way they were five minutes ago.

Sitting there, staring at him and having no idea what was going on in his mind, she couldn't find her voice. The darkest part of her brain had been right. Fang had been hiding the wings all along. His face was unreadable in the dark, and it scared her. Five minutes ago, it had all been alright.

And suddenly, it was too much for her, and all that was on her mind was that she desperately needed to get out of there. She sprang up from the bed, scrambled over the boxes and ran from the room, leaving Fang alone for all of two seconds before he leapt off the bed to run after her. "Max!" he shouted. "Wait, Max!"

She kept running. She sprinted up the stairs, past her father and brothers, who looked up from what they were doing in surprise. Without a backward glance, she ignored their questions, yanking the back door open and running outside.

Fang tripped up the stairs, totally forgetting his cool. He ignored the way Jeb's eyes narrowed at the fact that his shirt was up and that his jacket was missing. Glancing around the room, he noticed the open back door, and bolted through the kitchen, stumbling over a box of Styrofoam. "Wait!" he shouted again, to no avail.

Jeb's eyes widened as he saw a flash of black feathers. Fang disappeared too quickly, leaving Jeb and Gazzy to gape at each other, while Iggy tugged frantically on Gazzy's shirt sleeve to find out what happened. Jeb shook his head. So the time had finally come. She had found the only other bird kid in existence.

Max swung up from the porch railing and onto the roof, her foot slipping slightly. She crawled up, unfurling her wings, which were already partially out. Jumping off the roof quickly, she flapped frantically and immediately went into hyper drive at two hundred miles an hour.

Unfortunately, Fang was quick to follow. "Jesus!" he shouted as he saw her take off, and without an ounce of hesitation, followed her off the roof. And luckily for him, he had raptor vision, and it was a clear night. He saw exactly where she was going – straight over town.

Going as fast as he could, which was still a good one hundred and twenty miles slower than Max was going, he could barely see her. Why had she run from him? He was as shocked as she was. Why hadn't he at least suspected something? Or even said something to her sooner? It had caught him off guard.

He'd meant what he'd said. He'd meant every word of it. But unfortunately, he hadn't exactly been thinking with his brain when he'd started their little make-out session. If they were going to start tearing each other's' clothes off, she was bound to see his wings. And he knew that. Why had he been so careless?

She was now just a black dot in the distance. He was almost over the town now. He could see the line of cars rushing up and down the highway, the faint outlines of buildings, and the bird's-eye view of the town he'd seen so many times before, despite all his mother's warnings.

Suddenly, she stopped in the air, and he grinned to himself. Had she gotten tired that quickly? Wasn't she used to this flying thing? His arm reached out as he came ever closer, fully prepared to grab her and haul her back to her house to get her to listen to him if he had to. But then she did something he didn't expect – she dropped, from three hundred feet in the air.

She barely managed to smile to herself. Even in her shock, it felt good to be one step ahead of him. As she fell back, knowing fully where she was going, she smirked, relishing the one second of pure surprise on Fang's face before he dropped, and followed her. She rolled her eyes. He thought she was committing suicide or something.

At the last second, she whirled around, the top of the building below her rising up to meet her. She whipped her wings out, parachuting down. Sadly, Fang didn't quite see it coming. "Crap!" he yelled, and whipped his wings out just in time to go tumbling onto the hard roof of the tall office building. Max watched in a mixture of amusement and horror.

_So smooth, _a smug-sounding voice said. Max whirled around. Who was that? But the only two people on the rooftop were her and Fang. And Fang was probably bleeding internally.

She shrugged it off, glancing at Fang. He would probably be down for a while. And she was certainly in no mood to face him now. Biting her lip, she turned around, unfurling her wings all over again as she prepared to take flight. But when she felt a firm but warm hand on her wrist, she turned around to see Fang behind her.

"I think we need to talk," he said quietly.

* * *

"Will someone please tell me what's going on?" Iggy asked irritably, the silence eating away at him. Jeb and Gazzy were still in shock, gaping like idiots at the back door, which was now hanging open. "Uh, guys?" Iggy tried again, but they didn't reply. "Hey!" he yelled, snapping them from their little trance.

"It looks a lot like Fang just found out that Max has wings," Gazzy said breathlessly, "and it kind of seems like he found out by accident." Gazzy was fourteen, and he'd pretty much heard everything. He didn't have to be a rocket scientist to know specifically _how _this could have happened.

"Ack, no visuals, please," Iggy groaned. Of course, he didn't notice as Jeb nearly had a heart attack all over again. "Anyway, if she was the one who got busted, why was _she _the one that ran out screaming? Normally, you'd expect him to, like, throw a bucket of water on her and pray that she melted."

"Well, about that," Gazzy said hesitantly, not really wanting to be the first one to admit that it was true, "When Fang chased her out…it kind of looked like _he _was keeping secrets, too." Iggy took a minute to ponder that.

"Fang's a secret cross dresser?" he asked, confused.

"Fang has wings!" Gazzy snapped. "Well, that would explain why he just jumped off our patio and flapped his way after her!" Iggy's jaw dropped.

"Well," he grinned, "What have we learned today? One, Fang has wings, which is probably just a reaction to being thrown into toxic waste and not specifically because he's been to –cue scary music- the School." He and Gazzy slapped high-fives while Jeb rubbed his eyelids tiredly.

"Two, you should _never_ leave two teenagers of the opposite gender in a bedroom alone together," he chortled as Jeb shot him a glare that could have put Max's copyrighted snarl to shame. "And third," Iggy continued, "Fang is a sissy girl who has never eaten ribs."

Their laughter ended abruptly as Jeb slammed his fist down on the coffee table. "This is serious!" he snapped. "I always suspected it, but this really means that Max isn't the only one! And now that they _know _it works, I'm worried that they'll try this again! That they'll try to find her again!"

"Look, it's not that I'm not worried about Max," Iggy said. Max was his little sister. He loved her more than anything else in the world, Nudge and Ella included. "But I'm happy that she found someone like her. And I know that she can handle anything that comes at her now that she's older."

"But she's still just a kid," Jeb groaned. "Yeah, she's different from when she first got kidnapped, but the School is stronger than she is, too strong for even her to fight. I'm worried that this time," he bit his lip, "they won't let us have her back. If hanging around Fang makes her more of a target, I'm worried about her."

Iggy knew that those words were a code for 'maybe Max should stop seeing Fang'. He glared at his father. "I'm worried, too. Maybe I'm the only one who realizes how serious they are." _I know what it's like to feel that way. _"But she's almost an adult. She knows what's right for her. Sooner or later, to Fang or to the School, you're going to have to give her up. Let her go."

"No!" Jeb said furiously. "She's my daughter! It's my job to protect her! And she doesn't know what she wants yet! She hasn't seen all the options yet! She could be safe with someone else, someone like Sam, even! Someone safe!"

Iggy rolled his blind eyes. "Don't you realize that the only one who knows what's best for Max is Max? It's her choice! There's no reason that she has to settle for something less than what she wants. And it wasn't like she was going to choose someone as simple-minded and normal as Sam! For the last time, let her go!"

At that second, the phone rang, breaking the tension between Jeb and Iggy. "I'll get it," Iggy sighed and walked over to the phone, the only one they'd set up so far, now that Max was paying for things like food. "Hello?" Iggy asked into the receiver.

"Iggy?" A perky voice asked in reply, and Iggy's heart thudded. "E-Ella?" he asked shakily, glad to hear her voice and praying that it would be an over-the-phone breakup at the same time. He bit his lip hard as he remembered Nudge's voice when she had run away. He walked away from his father and brother, into his bedroom and listened.

"Iggy, it's been forever!" She squealed. On the other end of the phone, Ella was sitting on her bed in her very pink and fluffy bedroom, flipping through a few pictures she and Iggy had taken together, a picture or two of prom and things like that. "I can't believe I got your number!"

"I can't believe it either," Iggy said faintly, although he had to smile. He could practically see Ella now. She sounded just like had when he left. She hadn't changed. "It's great to hear from you, though." He smiled in content as he flopped down on his bed. She had probably called just to chatter on and on about life and how much she missed him, which was just fine.

She surprised him by saying the opposite. "Look, it's great to talk to you, but I have to go soon. I just wanted to tell you that I have a few days free from my schedule, so I wanted to come and see you for the holiday. I planned on coming up the morning of the fourth and staying until the seventh. Is that okay?" she asked.

Iggy sighed. Maybe seeing Ella was just what he needed to reassure himself that he had made the right decision. He hated that a part of him was nagging him that he should have chosen Nudge, when he'd promised Ella everything. This would ease his mind and put away any doubts. "Sure," he chuckled. "That's perfect."

"Great!" she smiled up at the ceiling. "This is gonna be great, Iggy." In her heart, she hoped that Iggy would ask her to marry him. He would get a job, she would get a house, and finally, _finally_, they could be together. "I love you, Iggy," she said whole-heartedly.

When he heard that, he wanted to die. Because really, he couldn't bring himself to say the same thing back to her. "Yeah," he said quickly, then pressed end. Clenching his head in his hands, he rammed his fist into the wall behind him. He ignored the throbbing, and honestly wouldn't care if the bone had broken.

Because compared to this choice, nothing hurt worse.

* * *

"So," Max murmured as she dangled her legs off the roof of the building, mimicking Fang's uninterested and emotionless look. "So," Fang replied, his eyes moving to look at Max's wings every few seconds. Exasperated, he turned to look at her. "Max, I'm confused. Why did you run away?"

She looked down. "I was surprised. I didn't know that about you."

"But you have wings, too," he persisted.

"I know!" she sighed. "But I didn't expect you to have wings. I fought for two months to hide them from you, always afraid that you were going to find out. I kept wondering if we were going to get serious enough for me to tell you. And I feel betrayed that you didn't tell me, but I don't have any room to talk, because I didn't tell you, either."

"I get it," he nodded. "If it had been a little longer…if I had been sure that you wouldn't leave at the end of the summer…I would have told you. But I didn't know how things were going to work out. And I was always obsessed with hiding my wings from you. I guess…I guess I was careless," he said sheepishly, remembering twenty minutes ago.

They fell silent again, staring over the drop. The cars that littered the downtown streets didn't stop to look up or to take pictures of the two kids sitting on the edge of a tall building. There were a million thoughts going through Max's head at light speed. Fang just sat in shock.

"How did you escape the School?" Max asked quietly. Fang looked up in surprise. Max bit her lip. "I mean, if you don't want to tell me, you don't-"

"They let me," he answered, and she looked at him incredulously. "I made the decision to escape, but they didn't open my cage or anything. They let me figure it out, to see what I would do. They wanted to study me, and they already thought I had stayed there long enough. So my escape was my final test.

He looked down. "I don't mean to be like Edward Cullen or anything, but I've killed people before, Max. I killed people getting out of there, and I was elementary-school age. The same kid that ate pop-tarts and was just learning to spell out words killed around fifty people."

Max looked down. "No one told me that there was another kid with wings. Why didn't I ever meet you?" she looked up at him, and he shrugged. "I was all alone for those months. When I got back, talking was strange because I hadn't used my ability to speak in so long."

"I didn't know, either," he replied. "But I don't think that there are any others. The School didn't have the funding for so many bird-kids, so we were the only two, just to prove that the operation worked." She nodded.

And they were silent again. Max cast Fang a sideways glance. He was still the same person that she loved, she had to remember that. The fact that he had told her she loved her didn't change. But somehow, it felt like a wall was dividing them. And she didn't want it to be that way.

She wanted him to hold her, to comfort her, to tell her that everything would be okay. But he didn't. He sat in his closed-off bubble, completely silent. Yet, it had never bothered her before. So why now? "I don't want you to feel separated from me," she struggled for the right words. "But if you want me to leave…I will."

Wanting to scream in frustration when she got no answer, she stood up and walked away. Out of the corner of Fang's eye, he could see it as she walked away from him. He wanted to stop her, but he couldn't find the will to stand up. She walked to the far end of the building and looked down, whipping out her wings in the process.

And just as she was about to leap off, he jumped up from where he'd been sitting, catching her wrist at the last second. She looked at him questioningly, seeing hurt and…vulnerability in his eyes. And that was very un-Fang-like. "Fang?" she asked cautiously.

He grabbed her other hand urgently. "I meant what I said back at your house. I still mean it. I want you to know that you're the best thing in my life, and I don't want you to leave. I love your wings, and everything else about you. And that I love you, I really do, more than anything else in the world."

"Fang," she was shocked. Was this really him?

"Let me get this out, because I probably won't say it ever again," he said breathlessly. "When the summer ends, I want you to stay, even when you go into high school. We don't have to make a decision this minute, but I want you with me, always. I don't want you to go."

"I wouldn't," she shook her head, and it was the truth. He smiled, and held her face in his hands, kissing her tenderly. _This is it. This is…love? _She'd wondered about that for a long time. And when they broke apart, she looked him in the eye. "I'm not going anywhere."

And he kissed her again.

* * *

Together, they flew back to her house. And Max wondered why it was that flying with two was so much better. Was it the way Fang's wings lightly caressed hers as they moved in synchronization? Was it having someone to fly _with_, for the first time in her life?

They landed in the driveway, slowly walking up the steps to the front porch, hand-in-hand. When the opened the front door, it wasn't any surprise to the others that they were together. Gazzy waved as if nothing had happened, Jeb cleared his throat, and Iggy shot him an I-told-you-so grin.

Jeb smirked. "I'm glad you two made up." And Max smiled, tugging Fang downstairs. "Oh, and Fang?" They both froze. "If you _ever _hurt Max, I'll rip your wings off and staple them back on." Max grinned harder as Fang grimaced.

They walked into her room, and she looked at him. "You don't have anywhere to be tonight, do you?" He shook his head, and grinned. Just for tonight, he didn't care if anyone found out. Just for tonight, he didn't care what anyone thought. Tonight, he was with Max.

He pulled her into a hug, his arms tightening around her. He picked her up bridal-style and walked her over to the bed, setting her down gently, then taking his place next to her and wrapping his arms around her. She snuggled into his chest, and he buried his face into her hair.

They fell asleep in each other's arms.

An hour later, Jeb crept down to the basement. One of Iggy's little jokes had him paranoid, and if Iggy was right, there would be hell to pay. He opened the bedroom door quietly, only to find Fang and Max asleep on top of the covers, clinging to each other silently.

He smiled softly, flicking off the light switch and closing the door with a soft click. Who would have thought that Max would have found happiness in the very place she had protested so loudly against?

She'd really made her home here, hadn't she?

* * *

**Yay, everything's going right for Max and Fang again! :D Only everything's not okay with Iggy. Next chapter - Ella time! xD Oh, this is gonna be fun. **

**I've gotten so many good reviews for the story, I never knew it would turn out so well. Three months into the story now! I know it may not seem like it. I haven't been able to update as much as I'd like, but I was wrong about my high school schedule. It's actually gonna be really easy, which means more updates for you! 8D **

**Thanks, _Kristina, _for my cookie :) Death threats are nice, but it's always nice to be loved xD **

**Review! 8D **

**~Rachel**


	13. Chapter 12

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 12 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted August 21st, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,808 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 | Ella - 19/ The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

* * *

Max woke up to the morning sun spilling through the window and onto the covers. Birds chirped outside the window, signaling that it was time to wake up. But she buried her head further into Fang's chest, just pretending to be asleep. She smiled as she remembered yesterday. But then, how could she forget?

Fang's right wing covered her completely in a makeshift blanket, her own left wing wrapped loosely around him. It was so strange knowing that Fang had wings. In a way, it was a bit of a dream come true. When she was younger, she had wished for someone like her. Now, it seemed surreal.

Denying the fact that she had woken up was always her favorite part of the day, those blissful few minutes before the world woke up, when she could just close her eyes and listen to the silence. Fang stirred next to her, and she knew he had woken up. But she didn't open her eyes.

"I know you're awake, Max," Fang smirked, and she stuck her tongue out childishly. His arms tightened around her, and she felt a flood of happiness race through her body. His hands traced light circles on her back, on that spot where her wings poked out of the slits in her shirt.

"How'd you sleep?" she asked, fully awake now.

He grinned down at her. "Pretty good. But it's pretty hard to get to sleep in the first place with someone staring at you with this big, goofy smile on her face the entire night." He grinned.

"Shut up," she muttered, glaring slightly. "I was not." He laughed out loud.

"Sure. And I bet you weren't poking my face, either." She reddened significantly as he chuckled. "Relax, I'm a light sleeper."

She rolled her eyes. "You were doing okay yesterday, don't be a jerk."

But she closed her eyes again and rested her head on his chest. She knew what they were both thinking. She didn't want him to leave and go back to his house. It was her day off, so at least she was free. But he would be in even more trouble if he didn't return home soon.

Up until the last part of the evening, yesterday had been fun. Her father didn't hate him, thankfully. Although, he was standoffish, almost to the point of being rude, when she brought _any _boy home. Iggy had stopped hating him, and he understood the situation better than almost anyone else. Gazzy had even managed to keep the rich boy jokes to a minimum.

Why couldn't it be like that all the time? Why couldn't his mom just accept who he was, and who he wanted to be? She bit her lip. She wanted more times like this. The summer was ending fast. She wanted to make sure that things would stay the same, even in a few months.

And then an idea hit her like a train. Today was the second of July, two days from the fourth. In past years, her family would always have a cookout sort of party and invite various friends and people from the neighborhood. If they were lucky, could they pull off the same thing?

She made a snap decision, not caring if her father said yes or no. Daddy's little girl could convince him of anything. "Fang, can I ask you something?" she looked up at him, and he shrugged.

"Sure."

"Well, we always have a fourth of July celebration here, or wherever we are, really. Different people come, and we all eat hamburgers and stuff, and watch fireworks. Remember hamburgers, Fang? You like hamburgers," she pointed out, and he looked down at her in amusement, his eyes sparkling with laughter.

She rolled her eyes. "Screw you. I just wondered if you'd like to come, is all. You could bring Nudge and Angel, too, I guess," she added. _There, genius. Perfect plan. _She smiled up at him hopefully.

"Your main interest these days seems to be getting me to go places with you and your family," he observed. "Well, we'd all _like _to go. But you forgot one small detail. _How the hell am I supposed to escape my house?_" She rolled her eyes and took a minute to wipe the Fang-spittle off her face.

"Simple," she answered. "You see, while I was minding my own business dusting the railing of the stairs, I heard your mother walking down the hall. Naturally, I thought she'd be there to bite my head off. So I simply jumped into the broom closet and hid."

"Stalker," Fang mumbled. He was slapped again.

"Anyway," she glared at him, "I heard her say that she would be gone from the night of the third until the afternoon of the fifth to visit a sister of hers in Florida, and that you kids would be left at the mercy of the servants. And if we know anything about them, they're not going to want to hang around you on the fourth of July. They have families."

"You want me to sneak out again?" he asked. "You're asking my sisters and I to sneak out of our house to spend the fourth of July with you?" She nodded. He sighed. "Fine. But I'll be thinking of ways for you to repay me for the next two days."

She rolled her eyes. "Repay you? How many times have you actually celebrated the fourth of July?"

"Well, we would always kill beetles with sparklers and threaten to light Angel's hair on fire…does that count?"

"That's it," she slapped her forehead. "You're coming, and that's final."

* * *

"No."

"But-"

"No!"

"Nudge-"

"I said no! I don't want to see him, Fang!" Nudge threw a pillow at her brother, who dodged it quickly. "Now get out of my room! I just want to eat chocolate and feel depressed like a teenage girl's supposed to feel when she gets rejected!" He rolled his eyes. The last thing he needed was to try to convince his hormonal sister to go to a fourth of July _party_.

"Come on, it'll be fun!" He flopped down on her bed to try a more reasonable approach. "You don't even have to do anything but talk to random people, have fun and eat hamburgers! You like hamburgers," he said, trying to be as sly and manipulative as Max had been.

"I don't care! Iggy will be there, and I've already had enough humiliation for one lifetime, thank you very much," she glared, and stuffed her face into another of her frilly pillows. That was one of the things Fang hated about her room. It was just so…pink. "Plus, I've never even had a hamburger!" _Oh, that went well, _his subconscious commented.

"Oh," he said sourly. "Look, Nudge, you don't even have to talk to him. But you like Max, and she's the one that invited you. If you won't go because of me, at least go because of Max. She's been nice to you for almost two months now."

"I know," she sighed. "But what'll I do if he talks to me, Fang?"

"Nudge, I don't know why he wouldn't choose you. But he's a nice guy, and I think he's just a little confused," he offered. "Did you ever think that this is your opportunity to talk to him, find out what was wrong, and convince him to choose you?" her face lit up.

"You think so?" she asked, smiling slightly. "You're right, Fang. I bet if I just talked to him about it, he'd definitely choose me!"  
"Well, I wouldn't go that far-"

"And after we get together, I'll find a bus ticket to wherever his girlfriend lives and tell her that the position of Iggy's girlfriend is _filled_!"

"Hold on just a second-"

"I love you, Fang! You're the best!"

After quick hug, she skipped from the room, leaving him stranded in the middle of the frills and enormous fluffy stuffed animals. Slowly, he walked across the room to the small tank, which held Nudge's prized possession – a turtle. Specifically, a turtle that Nudge hadn't realized was a male. Hence, the sparkly tutu.

"If you could talk," Fang peered at the tiny thing, "would you _scream_?"

* * *

Max was sitting at the kitchen counter, sipping coffee nonchalantly, as Iggy raced around the house. She had been observing him for the last half hour. Gazzy sat beside her. For the life of him, he couldn't figure out why Ella coming over was such a big deal. Sure, they had dated for over a year, but that didn't mean anything…much.

"You are acting like such a hormonal girl," Max yelled at him for the third time as Jeb turned the page of his newspaper. "Ella is not going to freaking care if the couch pillows aren't fluffed or the top of the ceiling fan is dusty!" She huffed as he completely ignored her and ran back to his room, probably to re-make the beds or something like that.

"It's no use," Gazzy shook his head. "Ever since he heard that Ella was coming over, he's been so paranoid that she'll break up with him over every little thing. Which, really isn't a bad idea." Max rolled her eyes. She knew that Gazzy had never really liked Ella.

But she wondered. Ever since Iggy had taken a liking to Nudge, Max had been picturing him just eventually breaking up with Ella and ending up with her. But if he really did choose Ella…what would happen? Would Iggy leave, and never come back, even if Max wanted to stay with Fang? Would she lose her brother?

Max shook her head. She just didn't think they were right together. She liked Ella, sure. What wasn't to like? She was a straight-A student, just the right amount of popular, and not catty at all. But she just seemed too young for Iggy, despite being the same age. She just wasn't enough.

Just then, the doorbell rang, and Max heaved an over-dramatic sigh. _Speak of the devil_. "And the devil shall appear," Gazzy answered her thoughts. Sometimes, that kid was as freaky as Angel. Iggy shot him a look and tripped over himself racing to the door. Max snorfle-coughed into her coffee as he picked himself up and opened the door.

"Iggy!" Ella squealed, and Gazzy mimicked throwing up into his coffee cup. "Ella," he answered. _Woohoo. Cue emotional hugging in the doorway. _Once they broke apart, she stood beaming at him. "Wow, it's so good to see you again! I missed you so, so much!" And Max's heart went out to her. She wondered how she'd feel if she was separated from Fang for so long.

Iggy smiled. No matter how much he had been thinking about Nudge, it was wonderful having Ella back with him. He cupped her face with one hand and lowered his lips to hers, and he was thrilled at how much love he still felt for her. They continued blissfully for well over thirty seconds before Jeb cleared his throat, and they sprang apart.

"Don't mind us," Max slapped on a fake smile. _I feel bad for her and all, but, I mean, let's not get too carried away. _Ella blushed furiously. "Seriously, don't mind her," Iggy whispered, and Max scowled. _Let's not forget the raptor-hearing, hotshot. _

He pulled her into the kitchen, where the whole family came into view. He poured her a cup of coffee and offered her a seat. "Hi, Max. Hi, Gazzy," she smiled, and they both waved at her from approximately two feet away. She looked down, embarrassed.

"Iggy, can I talk to you?" she asked, giving him a look. He didn't have to see it to know that she was serious. She grabbed his hand, dragged him down the hall and into his bedroom, locking the door behind her. "What?" he asked, annoyed. "You couldn't have waited a few more minutes?"

She bit the inside of her cheek. "Iggy…are you sure that this is what you really want?" She stared at him.

"What do you mean?"

She looked down. "It's just that you seemed so happy with Nudge. It didn't matter if it was the crappiest day of your life, she always cheered you up. And the day that you came home from the park…you looked so sad."

Looking back up at him, she saw confusion. "You always used to worry, and ask me if I was happy. Now, I am. But I'm wondering the same thing about you. I just want you to be happy. I want to know that you've made the right decision based on what _you _want."

He rolled his eyes in disgust. "Spare me your concern. I don't need it. Don't you realize that I made a promise to Ella a long time ago? This is my decision. I wouldn't do this if I didn't believe it was right." He brushed past her, his hand on the doorknob.

"Wait, Iggy," she grabbed his shoulder, but he jerked away from her touch. "Leave me alone, Max," he said, his voice like stone. "Just leave me the hell alone."

And he was gone, leaving her alone to think.

* * *

_Alright. Here's our chance – almost everyone has already left to go home with their families. Tell Nudge to sneak out of her window, quickly. I'll see you up on the roof in three minutes, Angel. _Sticking his head out the window to look around at the driveway, he could see the last of the cars leaving. He didn't need to ask if Angel had heard him. He knew she had.

Quickly, he swung his legs out so that he was sitting on the outside ledge, and closed the window with a quiet click. Jumping up off the balcony, he grabbed the tree branch above him and climbed onto the roof. _I feel so Spiderman-ish. _

Angel was waiting for him at the top of the roof, Nudge sitting behind her and picking something out of her nails. _You sound a lot cooler in your thoughts, Fang. _He rolled his eyes.

"Are we ready to go?" he asked, receiving nods from the both of them. First he grabbed Angel, picking her up and parachuting to the ground gently. Once he had done the same with Nudge, they were off, walking as quickly as they could without looking conspicuous. Luckily, all the gardeners had left.

He cast a sideways glance at Nudge, who was staring at the ground and lost in thought. Obviously, she still wasn't thrilled with the idea of going, and wasn't nearly as confident as she had felt the other day.

"Do you even remember where Max lives?" Angel asked skeptically.

"Uh…let's say that I do," he replied uneasily.

She rolled her eyes. "I knew it. You can't do anything right? Can you? Fine, I'll scan your memory. You were already there once, so it's embedded somewhere in your brain, right?" He shrugged, and they kept walking. After a few moments, Angel looked up at him. "Okay. Follow me."

Leading him through quiet neighborhoods and busy city streets, even Fang had to admit that he looked pretty strange, allowing himself to be dragged around by a little girl and her sister. This was so ruining his tough guy image. He just smiled as he was pulled forward.

"There, that one," he pointed straight ahead, to a small, tired house with a deteriorating front porch and missing shingles on the roof. "Are you high?" Nudge asked in disbelief. She had known Iggy was poor, but this…

"It's not bad," Fang laughed. He noticed that Nudge was sniffing the air, trying to figure out what that peculiar smell was. "That's the smell of hamburgers, by the way," he chuckled, and pulled them onto the porch, knocking lightly. The door was opened a few seconds later.

"Guys!" Max seemed genuinely surprised. "You brought Nudge and Angel, too!" She tried to ignore how Nudge looked at her feet, and how Iggy had acted earlier. "Come on in. My brother's making the food, so it should be ready soon." She tried to avoid saying Iggy's name, for fear of a sick-looking Nudge running away quickly.

They followed her inside. Angel wasted no time in finding Gazzy, dragging Nudge along with her. Max sent her a silent thank you – she didn't want Nudge to feel left out of anything that day. Fang kissed her lightly on the cheek and followed her out onto the back porch with Iggy. "Iggy, where's Ella?" she asked, eyes scanning for her.

Before Iggy or Fang could open their mouths to speak, Nudge turned around. "Who's Ella?" she asked. Iggy cast Max a sideways glance. "Uh, she's a friend of the family," Max answered quickly. _So she was listening, _she thought wryly. Nudge looked at her suspiciously, but turned away nevertheless. "She's resting a little. She'll be out by the time the fireworks start."

The locusts buzzed noisily as the sun started to set. Hamburgers were passed out one by one. At first, it was awkward for Nudge and Angel. It was the first time they'd ever been in a house that was anything short of a mansion, and it was strange seeing how different things were.

Fang and Max watched from their spot on the roof as Gazzy taught Angel and Nudge how to play different games that normal children learned at age three, like tag and hide and go seek. Frankly, they were intrigued, because it was just so different. But in a good way.

Slowly, different people in the neighborhood smelled the food and heard the laughter. Heads peeked over fences, and children stopped to stare, noticing the joy that you just didn't get in the poor, low-class part of town. "There's plenty to go around," Jeb held up a hamburger, and slowly, the people started trickling into the small backyard.

In a matter of minutes, laughing, eating and the quiet chatter of the evening could be heard as young and old piled in. Max remembered thinking that she was glad she had bought so much extra food. Dragging Fang inside, she helped him make a tray of sandwiches to be set out for the extra people.

Really, she enjoyed so many people coming together. She enjoyed seeing Fang so willing to help.

And looking at Max, Fang couldn't help but notice just how amazing she was, in every way. Eventually, they walked back outside and resumed their position on the roof, Fang silently tracing circles with his hand on Max's back, on that spot where her wings were tucked into her back.

He had realized something over the last couple weeks. He loved Max, and he never wanted her to leave him. He couldn't imagine his life without her, even though he hadn't even known her for that long. And he also knew that he was too young to make any commitment. But he was seriously thinking – if there was a way to make Max stay, shouldn't he go for it?

Max looked down at the crowd, and noticed something she couldn't believe - the guy from the bus, who chased her and probably would have beaten her up if Fang hadn't saved her - he was there, in her own backyard, cheerily chomping on a cheeseburger.

The bastard.

Leaping down from the roof, she strode through the countless people and walked up to said bastard. She was tempted to yell at him, but this was just too good. So her fist swung out, and she punched him, full in the face. He flew back into the fence, and when he looked back at her, there was murder on his face. Until it dawned on him. "You-you're her!" he stuttered.

Fang came up behind Max and put a hand on her shoulder. "Yeah, it's me," snarled Max. "And you're a dirty ass if you think you're gonna fight me in front of all these kids!"

But then, he did something that she didn't believe. "I'm sorry," he said, bowing his head slightly. "I _was _an ass. I was just having a bad day, and I took it out on you. I'm sorry," he half-grinned down at her. And then she realized what was going on. He was hitting on her. "Uh, that's fine," she backed up slightly.

"D'you have a boyfriend?" he asked suddenly. Max could only gape.

Luckily, Fang was wearing his threatening face. "What the hell do you think I'm for, decoration?" he snarled, and the guy backed up. "Chill out, man," he stammered, and backed up. "It's all cool." Max had to forcibly haul the snarling Fang away.

At six o'clock, Nudge gathered all her courage. She knew that Iggy was more important to her than just about anything in the world, even if, for the life of her, she couldn't figure out why. And she'd be a fool not to try.

Iggy felt a light tap on his back, and turned around. When she spoke, he didn't have to have his eyesight to know that it was Nudge. His heart thudded in his chest painfully. Why couldn't she just understand that this was the way it had to be? He _couldn't _be with her, he just couldn't. It wasn't fair to Ella, after all she had waited for, after dreams that could still come true.

"Nudge," he said, in an attempt to sound calm and reserved but really only sounded weak and pleading. Pleading for her to go away, to stay away from him, because she could always find someone better, someone that wasn't already tied down.

"I need to talk to you," she bit her lip, and without waiting for a response, promptly pulled him inside. Without knowing a single thing about his house, she pulled him into the nearest corner, which happened to be the far end of the living room. She took a deep breath.

"Okay, so here it is, Iggy," she looked down, even though she knew he couldn't see her. "I barely know you. As far as you're concerned, I'm not in your life, and we shouldn't be friends. But I _want _to know you!" He looked at her, confused.

She smiled softly. "I don't know what's going on in your life. I don't know all your problems. But when I went to that gas station, every day, it was because of you!" she looked at him. "Hear me out. I want to keep going there. I want to keep talking to you. I don't know you yet, but I want to know you!"

He stared at her, shocked.

"I don't even know how to say it, but I like you. I like you more than normal. And I know it's hard for us to be together, with my life and how I live, and how I'm different from you. But I like everything about you. I want to be good enough for you."

In an instant, he'd pinned her against the wall fiercely. "Don't say that. You don't need to be good enough for me, because you're perfect in every way." Her heart fluttered. He was so close. She could see everything – the way his bangs fell over his face, the way his eyelashes were so long, the way his colorless eyes still held so much meaning.

There was so much he wished he could tell her, so much that she didn't know, and so much that she didn't understand. "I like you, too." He pulled back, her heart pounding. "But I can't do this. She means too much to me." With a pang of jealousy, Nudge realized what 'she' meant.

"Iggy?" asked a voice behind him, and Iggy turned away. Standing in the doorway was a beautiful girl. Her shiny black hair stopped in the middle of her back, her dark eyes kind and inviting. Even in jeans and a T-shirt, she managed to outshine Nudge, but her face showed concern.

"Who's she?" both of them asked at the same time, and recoiled.

Max hummed something she'd heard on the radio as she walked into the kitchen, taking out another tray, more bread and sandwich meat, when she looked around the corner to see Ella, Iggy and Nudge, all in the same place. The tray dropped to the floor, but no one seemed to notice. Peeking out from behind the wall, she realized that she was technically eavesdropping. But she was worried about Iggy. She knew he'd make the right decision for Ella.

But would he make the right decision for himself?

Iggy looked at the floor. "Ella, I'd like you to meet Nudge. Nudge, this is Ella, my…my fiancé."

* * *

**Thanks for all the reviews! My story is over the 150 review mark now, yay! *throws confetti into the air* So you all get an early update for being so nice! ^^ I start school in three days, so I'm updating this story as much as possible, meaning that there will probably be one more chapter -two if you're lucky- before that. My other stories WILL be updated soon, for anyone who reads them, but for the next few days, it's all about this one. :D **

**I've got some reviews asking if it's the end. The answer - OF COURSE NOT! Did you think the story was JUST based on Max and Fang finding out about each other's wings? I have WAY more plot twists coming your way! (Some of which you'll hate me for xD) **

**Again, thanks for reviewing! Every time someone clicks that button, it makes me incredibly happy! And, well, let's just say that every time you DON'T click the button, Pooh bear dies a little bit inside. D: So here's the question you should ask yourself - would you kill Pooh bear? xD **

**~Rachel**


	14. Chapter 13

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 13 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted August 22nd, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,521 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 | Ella - 19 | Dylan - 17/ The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

* * *

Nudge couldn't believe what she had just heard. _Fiancé?_ She had known that Iggy had a girlfriend, but she had always just assumed that she was only a girlfriend, a picture from his past that he was clinging desperately to. But this was different. This was the girl he was going to get _married _to.

And that made her feel dirty. She'd gone after a guy who was as good as married, and what was worse, he didn't _tell_ her, and they'd kissed. They were supposed to be friends, at the very least. So why was this girl in front of her now, looking as confused as Nudge herself did?

"Fiancé," Nudge murmured slowly, looking down at her feet and blinking away tears furiously. How could this have happened to her? She was stupid for even coming, stupid for thinking that anything she had to say could change his mind.

Iggy nodded, and Ella looked up at him in confusion. Sure, this "Nudge" didn't look like anything much, with scrawny arms, big eyes and frizzy hair, but Iggy had seemed so close to her about three seconds ago, before she had interrupted them.

"What's going on?" Ella asked. Iggy had asked her to marry him. By all rights, he was hers now, something she'd been waiting for as long as she'd found out he was moving away from her. Now that it had finally happened, nothing, and more importantly, _no one_ could stop it, right?

Iggy looked down. "Nudge is a friend," he replied steadily, and Nudge flinched at his cold and indifferent tone. "She's Fang's sister. You remember Fang, right? I told you, he's Max's sister." Ella nodded uneasily, and Nudge bit her lip.

Max glared at Iggy from across the room. When exactly had this little engagement happened? More importantly, when exactly had he found the time to propose to her? Over the phone? No, that wasn't right. Max distinctly remembered listening in on the phone conversation.

She heard the door open behind her as Fang walked into the kitchen. "Max?" he called. He was abruptly pulled to the floor as Max grabbed his hand and yanked him into a sitting position. "Shh!" she hissed, and turned back to Nudge, Ella and Iggy, who hadn't noticed him coming in.

"Just a friend," Ella repeated cautiously. She knew she was acting like a territorial bitch, and Nudge didn't look mean. But she wanted to make sure that nothing would ruin her chances with Iggy. She loved him. She'd waited for him. And now all of her dreams were coming true.

Iggy nodded in agreement. _Oh, right, just a friend_, his subconscious smirked at him. _Because a friend is someone you wish could be your girlfriend. A friend is someone you make out with in the gas station. _Max whirled around to see Angel chuckling behind her. "What's funny?" she hissed.

"Your brother's thoughts are even stupider than Fang's," she chortled. Max and Fang pointedly ignored her, and turned back to Iggy, Nudge and Ella.

Nudge bit her lip and looked up at Iggy. "Congratulations," her voice cracked as she pushed past him and ran out the door, slamming it behind her. It was over. The tears were flowing freely now, and she slumped against the door, burying her face in her arms and just allowing herself to cry.

It was over. There would be no more going to Iggy's gas station and spending the day with him. She wouldn't joke or laugh or talk with him anymore. She wouldn't be able to see him smile anymore. She wouldn't be there when he was in trouble or needed help. This was goodbye.

"I love you," she whispered to the thin air, and she knew it was true. "I really love you." And she realized that she _did _know him, probably better than Max. She knew that he liked cloudy days even though he couldn't see him, and that he actually liked being poor because it brought his family closer.

"Goodbye, Iggy," she stood up and set off walking. She forgot that she had a home to go to, and started off down the quiet street. Closing her eyes, she just listened to the sound of silence, seeing how Iggy saw things one last time.

And it worked out perfectly, until she smacked into someone, and her eyes flew open.

"S-Sorry," she stammered, and looked up. She blushed as he inspected her curiously. _He probably thinks I'm some kind of freak for walking down the middle of the road with my eyes closed, _she almost groaned to herself.

"It's okay," he shrugged. "Look, are you okay? You look…terrible. Like, depressed," he decided. She rolled her eyes. "Gee, thanks." She looked up at him, and she was surprised. He looked like an angel. Well, almost, anyway. He had thick dirty-blonde hair, with deep eyes and slightly tanned skin. He looked around Max and Fang's age.

She frowned and walked past him, fully intent on still being miserable. It wasn't like she had a specific reason to be happy. "Huh?" she heard him behind her, and he turned around to follow her. "Hey, wait up!" She rolled her eyes again.

"Why are you following me?" she asked bluntly. "You were walking _that _way. Don't you have somewhere to be?" She kept walking.

He shrugged, following her. "Not really. I just noticed that a lot of people in the neighborhood were over at one of those houses and decided to see what was going on." She felt another pang of hurt and grief as she remembered Iggy. He panicked. "I'm sorry, did I say something wrong?"

She shook her head. "No. Just having a bad day, really."

He flashed her a crooked grin. "I know what'll cheer you up."

She glanced at him curiously. "What could possibly cheer me up?"

He smiled brightly. "Come with me," he grabbed her hand and pulled her along.

* * *

Back inside the house, Ella turned to glare at Iggy, who saw it coming, figuratively. As soon as the door slammed, she whirled on him. "Alright, what the hell was that?" she shrieked. "What did you tell that poor girl, and why was she crying? She's a little young, but she looked like she really liked you! So what did you say to her?" She was on her toes yelling.

Iggy shifted uncomfortably, knowing that people outside on the porch were starting to stare. "Ella, can we take this someplace more…secluded?" he asked desperately. He had just ended it with Nudge, and he didn't really want to talk to anyone, let alone the girl he had given her up for.

"No!" she looked at him desperately, but she pulled him into the hallway anyway, so at least their neighbors wouldn't be staring at them. Max rolled her eyes as she shifted positions so as to spy on them better. Fang just shook his head.

"Iggy, talk to me!" she pleaded. "I want to know exactly what's happened in these two months that you've been gone! You seem so different and guarded and cold, and I just want the boy I love to come back! I want to know who that girl is, and why she was crying!"

He looked straight at her, and she gulped. She was scared to know the truth. She didn't want to believe that Iggy had changed in only two months. "It doesn't matter what happened. What matters is that it's over now, and you and I are engaged, alright?" His voice was hard.

"Iggy…" She shook her head. "No! You're in pain. You're hurting about something, and I want to know if I caused it! I…I _love _you!" She looked at the ground. "I don't care where I am, as long as I have you, because you're the one I've waited for! But I want to know that you feel the same way!"

"What's going on?" Max heard a voice behind Angel, and she whirled around to find Gazzy sitting behind her. He grinned sheepishly up at her, and she rolled her eyes. "Nudge just found out about Ella and ran out, and now Ella wants to know about Nudge."

Gazzy looked puzzled. "Nudge likes Iggy?" Angel slapped him. "Oh, keep up." They resumed their staring.

"Look, if we're getting married, I don't want it to be a mistake!" she exclaimed. "If we're going to be married, with a house and a family and everything, I want it to last. You're the one I want to spend my life with!"

"What's happening?" came a voice behind Gazzy. Max gave an exasperated sigh and turned around to see Jeb peering around the corner at Iggy and Ella. "Fang's little sister likes Iggy and he just stomped on her heart so she ran out," Gazzy answered cheerily. Fang elbowed him.

Iggy just looked down. He looked strangely like he was being pestered._ Why is he hesitating? _Max was furious. _He just broke Nudge's heart for Ella, and now he's not sure if he made the right decision? You jerk! Just make up your mind already! _Angel grimaced and scooted away from her.

"Iggy, please! Tell me that this isn't just a mistake!" Ella looked more worried and vulnerable than Max had ever seen her, but Iggy just walked away.

"I'm sorry," Iggy turned around to look at her, so much pain in his eyes. "I can't tell you that."

* * *

"So what I'm getting here is that you loved this guy, 'Iggy' or whatever, and he was already engaged to another girl, so you ran out, started walking down the street with your eyes closed because this guy was blind, and you ran into me," he peered at her curiously from across the table.

Nudge sipped her smoothie nonchalantly and looked away. She knew he was getting frustrated with her, but she couldn't understand why she should talk about her personal life to this inquisitive stranger. "Why do you care?" she asked.

He shrugged. "You're obviously really upset about it. I can't help it, I'm interested. Shoot me for caring about my fellow human being," he grinned. She ignored him and looked away. "Plus, I don't want the next thing you run into to be a _car_," he added.

She blushed and looked down. "But you don't understand. I don't know you, and you don't me. I don't know your life story, and you don't know mine. I don't know your name, and you don't know my name. But the difference is, _I _don't care."

He laughed. "Wow, aren't you the friendly one? _I _happen to care about your life story, and your name, and who you are." She gazed at him curiously. He was just so strange. She didn't know people that strange actually existed.

"Just what planet are you from?" she asked curiously, and he chuckled. "You _don't _know me. I'm a random stranger that you ran into –literally!- on the street. Sure, you bought me a smoothie, but that doesn't make us best pals, now does it?"

Grinning, he twirled his straw around in his own smoothie. "I'm willing to bet that Little Miss Prickly isn't really 'best pals' with anyone, am I right?" He studied her carefully. "I think you're one of those rich girls, in the fancy part of town," he declared.

She reddened. "Just what makes you say that?" her voice went up about an octave. He backed off. "Whoa, don't take it the wrong way. You just seem like you don't get out much is all." He shrugged. "So your friends, they're poor and you're rich. How did that happen?"

"Stalker," she accused sourly, and he laughed. "Well, if you _must _know, Iggy's younger sister works as a maid in our house. So our families became friends." _Why am I telling him this? Next he's probably going to ask where I live and for my last name, and possibly my mom's social security number on top of that. _

He chuckled. "And you say I don't know you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked indignantly. "You _don't_ know me. You don't know my name or anything, and after today, I'll probably never see you again."

He shook his head. "I may not know your name, but that doesn't mean I don't know you." He leaned in. "I'll let you in on a little secret – I've known you for twenty minutes, and I know things that you haven't told anyone else." He leaned back.

She blushed furiously. "So? That doesn't mean anything," she stammered. "I talked to Iggy all the time. And I actually _knew _his name," she glared.

"It's a stupid name, by the way," he laughed, her death glare having no effect on him. "Did you mention all this to him in twenty minutes? Look, it's no big deal to me that I don't know you. I don't care if I never see you again, no offense." She wanted to punch that stupid grin off his face.

"What's your point?" she asked tiredly.

"Did you ever stop to think that maybe Iggy doesn't know you that well?" he asked, and she frowned. "Don't get me wrong, like him all you want. But you're a little too young to pick out who you want to be with at this age. There's lots of time to decide."

She looked up. "Thanks for your concern, but I don't need you to tell me that. I can take care of myself, you know. And anyway, you're almost the same age as me, so you don't need to be all preachy, mister."

"If you really want to be sure if you're right for someone…ask them what their dream is. What their plan for their life is. And if it includes you…then it was just meant to happen. That's the most important thing," he said thoughtfully.

She rolled her eyes. "_His _plans include his fiancé and a perfect life."

She finished her smoothie and chucked it in the garbage. He shrugged. "Suit yourself. I'm just saying that you don't have to know right this minute, you know." He stood up. "Well, it's getting dark, and you shouldn't walk home alone any later than this."

"Thanks," she said, getting out of the booth and following him out of the restaurant. "Seriously, thanks for everything. You're right about all of it." She looked up at him. "I hope I get to meet you again," she smiled.

"I hope so, too," he smiled, and turned to walk away. "Wait!" she called after him. He stopped.

"If I ever do see you again…what can I call you?" she asked.

He turned around and flashed her a grin. "Dylan," he replied, and then he was gone.

* * *

Iggy was lying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling, when Ella burst into the room. He closed his eyes. He didn't want to do this. Not right now. Nevertheless, she was glaring down at him in seconds. He sat up, knowing it was her. "What do you want, Ella?" he asked.

"I want the truth, Iggy," she answered. "The whole truth."

He stood up and looked her in the eyes, and she forgot that she was angry at him. She forgot all the fury that was in her heart. She was afraid, afraid of what he was going to say, because in her heart, she already knew, and it terrified her. "Don't do this," she whispered.

He closed his eyes. "You need to know everything, Ella," he sat down, and she followed him. "You need to know that when I moved out here, I missed you more than anything in the world, and that I loved you. I still do. You need to know that it killed me to move here."

"Then what's the problem?" she asked, just wanting to get it over with. "I hate that things are different now. I hate it! I want you to know that I love you, and it feels like you're rejecting me." There were tears in her eyes. "What did I do wrong, Iggy?"

He grabbed her hands and enveloped them in his own. "You didn't do anything wrong, Ella. But I moved here, and I moved on with my life. I don't even know what I want anymore. I was so sure I wanted to go to college and marry you. But I'm happy here, the way I am."

He looked down. "I thought of so many plans, plans that included you. But none of them made me happy. It's just not what I want with my life." He looked into her eyes. "You also need to know that I was in love with the girl that ran away."

She stood up. "I love you, Ella." She shook her head. "You love her more." He nodded slowly.

"I get it. I want you to be happy. And I'm okay with it. But I hope you know that I wanted to marry you, and that I would have." She looked into his eyes. "But most of all, I just want you to be happy with your life. And if it doesn't include me, I'll be happy for you anyway."

He hugged her, one last time. Her heart was sinking, knowing that it was the last time, but she'd give him up, just like she had when he first left her. "I hope you find what you're looking for," she said, and she meant it. "Go," she urged him. "Go get her, before it's too late."

In the hallway, he ran into Max, who gave him a questioning look. But before she had a chance to ask any questions, he spoke. "You were right. You were right about everything. I don't know how you knew, but you did, and if you hadn't figured it out, I never would have. That was a real wake-up call back there."

Max smiled. "I guess I'm psychic." She hugged him. "From now on, do what makes you happy. It's your life."

He nodded, and grabbed his jacket off the coat rack. But when he opened the front door, Nudge was standing right in front of him. "Hi," he said quietly. "Hi," she replied, right before he pulled her into his arms. And she heard every word he hadn't spoken. _I love you. I'm sorry. You're the only one for me. I was stupid. I love you. _

_I love you, too. _

* * *

An hour later, the darkness had set in, and the stars were out. Chatter, laughter and the sound of chirping locusts filled the air as the clouds started to clear and fireworks were painted across the night sky. Small children ran around the yard, setting off firecrackers and chasing each other around with sparklers.

Max sighed, finally content. This wasn't just a prison anymore. It was a home. For the first time, she could see herself spending her life right there. And when she pictured the rest of her life, she was surprised at herself for seeing Fang right there beside her through it all.

With her hand in Fang's, she was always sure of everything. Every doubt she had would just vanish, and she would feel at peace. Maybe he was the answer to all her problems. _He's a brat, and a pain in the ass, and a horrible cook…but I love him, _she thought, smiling slightly.

On their right, Nudge sat in Iggy's arms. She wasn't completely sure she forgave him yet, but she still loved him, that was for sure. And with his arms wrapped around her, she couldn't figure out that he loved her. _Why is it like this? Why is he acting just like Max is with Fang? His girlfriend probably broke up with him or something. _

Nevertheless, she remembered something that Dylan had said, that had stuck with her. She didn't particularly know why. "Iggy," she said hesitantly, and he looked down at her. "Iggy, what's your dream?" she asked him.

He shrugged. "I don't have one right now. I'm still kind of figuring things out." She looked away, shaking off the feeling of rejection.

"But," he lifted her chin with his finger, "I do know that any good day is a day I spend with you, that I wouldn't cry for you because I would fight for you, and that I never want to hurt you again." She felt her heartbeat quicken. "Now – my dream is to make up for hurting you. In every way that I can."

And he kissed her forehead sweetly. Max watched out of the corner of her eye, and smiled up at Fang, who said nothing, only pressed his lips to hers. She rested her head on his shoulder and glanced up at the sky, streaked with lights and colors.

_I guess this is my dream, _she thought. _I never knew that I could feel this…happy. _

From the yard, Angel looked up at her, and winked. Maybe they didn't quite know how their story would turn out. But she could see it clearly. Slowly, everything was coming together.

She was happy as Max smiled back, and kissed Fang again.

**Last update of the summer, yay! Well, not yay. BOO HISS HISS. But at least I worked everything out in my own little way! xD Niggy ftw~ Wow, almost 180 reviews? I'm soo happy ^^ You people are awesome 8D **

**Muahaha, Dylan! xD Yup, he's here! Feel free to shoot me. Sorry, but I had to do it. I actually really like Dylan. :D **

**Thanks to all your beautiful reviews, Pooh bear thanks you. You saved him. Now, let's throw in a bonus. Every time you review my story NOW, Bob the Builder gets shot. xD **

**~Rachel**


	15. Chapter 14

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 14 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted September 4th, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,944words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 | Dylan -17/ The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

* * *

"Max, open this door!" Jeb pounded on her bedroom door noisily, aggravated. "Come on, Max, wake up! We have some errands to run!"

With a snort, the girl on the other side woke up to the rattling of Jeb trying the doorknob again, knowing full well that it was locked. She groaned, and looked over to the clock on her bedside table. _Nine o'clock on a Saturday? Is he high? This is my sleep-in day. _"What do you want, old man?" she shouted tiredly.

He rolled his eyes and beat his fists against the doorway once again. "I just told you. You need to get through the shower in the next half hour. We need to go into town to run some errands," he yelled through the wood. "Now open this door!"

"I was sleeping!" she yelled back. "And I'll have you know that it's my only day off, and I plan on enjoying it by sleeping until tomorrow! So check back then!" And with that, she thrust her head back into the pillow and made an attempt to block out the noise with her comforter.

"Max, you're being unreasonable," he said sternly, wondering briefly if a sledgehammer would work for something like this. _No, no, I probably shouldn't try that again, _he thought wearily.

"Get Iggy to go shopping with you!" she replied through the pillow. "He needs to get off his lazy ass after all that Ella-Nudge-Ella-Nudge bull crap!"

Jeb rolled his eyes. "He's at _work_."

"…Oh." There was a pause. "Well then, get Gazzy to do it!"

"We're shopping for _his_ birthday present," Jeb argued. "Come on, Max. It isn't hardly fair that he has to do his own birthday shopping." Silence on the other side of the door. "I'm serious, Max. I know you're tired, but it's only once a year. Now open this door!"

"It isn't _supposed _to open. Hence the lock," she said irritably. Just because things had been okay with Jeb recently didn't mean she resented him any less. And he wasn't helping his case any by getting her up almost-early-ish on a Saturday morning.

"Max," his voice was warning. To be honest, he was hurt. He'd tried to stay out of Max's way while at the same time trying to be the father that she needed, despite her protests. And it clearly hadn't done one bit of good. She still hated him.

"Fine," she muttered. "Just like Burger King – have it your way," she snarled, and threw the covers off. There was a trick to maneuvering around her room. She had one desk, one small dresser, and a queen-sized bed in a shoebox of a room. So, naturally, there was a bit of a problem.

Jeb heard a series of crashing, banging, clanging and clamoring as Max tripped over the desk chair, got tangled up in the desk lamp, crawled to the door and felt her way up to the doorknob, yanking the desk lamp off the table and dragging the alarm clock with it, which promptly went off, emitting a loud beeping noise.

The door swung open slowly to reveal Max crouched on the ground, locked in an intense battle with the desk lamp's wire. "Nothing good comes from doing what you ask," Max muttered, unwrapping the lamp from around her leg and chucking it across the room.

Jeb rolled his eyes. "Look, Max, I admit, we're not exactly the best of pals, but-"

"The best of pals?" Max glared at him from her spot on the floor. "Jeb, believe me, we're not even close to the best of pals. And I'll go, but it's because of Gazzy. But if you think you can pull this off again, busting my ass to go shopping when I'm the one making the _money _for those sorts of things, you can stick that idea where the sun doesn't shine."

Instead of glaring furiously like she wanted him to, he just shook his head. "Max, I know it's hard for you. And I know you're doing an incredible thing for us. I'm very proud of you." She looked away. "But we can't keep fighting like this. It's unhealthy. I need you on my side."

"Go to Nationwide," she said bluntly, and walked from the room, grabbing a towel from the cabinet behind him. "I'm going to take a shower now. I'll be out in fifteen minutes." She stopped in the doorway and looked back at him.

"Once I'm eighteen, I'm done with this. I don't know where I'll go, but it'll be anywhere but here." She looked down. "It's not because I hate you. I want to forgive you, even though I know it's not your fault. But I just can't." And she turned around.

She heard his footsteps fade away, and she knew she had hurt him. But she couldn't bring herself to care.

_It's because you can't forgive yourself. _

What was that voice? It sounded as if it had been spoken aloud. She spun around, but she came face to face with the wall. Jeb was gone. He was already upstairs.

Well, that was odd.

She shrugged and walked into the bathroom. It was probably nothing.

* * *

"Ah," she sighed contentedly, walking out of the bathroom and running a dry washcloth through her hair to dry it a bit more. She walked down the narrow hallway to her room, and flopped down on the bed. Groaning, she sank into the comforter. _Need…sleep…_

_No! _She frowned and picked herself up. Jeb would kill her if he found her asleep again. She walked over to the closet, rummaging through her clothes for something to wear. Oh, what the hell. She wasn't seeing anyone today. She grabbed a pair of faded jeans and an old T-shirt, throwing on the clothes lazily.

_Just jeans and a T-shirt? You might meet someone special today. First impressions and all that…_

She jumped, falling back onto the bed and rolling over onto the floor, hitting her head on the dresser in the process. She bit back a groan, her eyelashes fluttering rapidly. Where had that voice come from? It sounded strangely like a parent.

"Okay, okay," she said, sounding worried. Was she going crazy, or was she just paranoid? The voice that usually told her what outfits to wear was her _own_, or Nudge's, not a crazy psycho monotonous voice from nowhere.

Quickly, she shrugged off the shirt and jeans, and replaced it with some skinny jeans and one of her tank tops. _Are you happy?_ She asked the imaginary voice-thing. If it was even there. _Come on, Max. You're acting stupid, _she told herself.

_Stupidity is in the eye of the beholder. _Once again, the voice came out of nowhere, and she jumped back, straight into the wall, hitting her head and crashing to the floor awkwardly. Now she was really starting to get freaked out. "Who's th-there?" she asked nervously. "Come out and show yourself!"

_There's really nothing to show, Maximum_, the monotonous voice replied, sounding somewhat amused, or at least, what she thought was amused for a voice that showed no amusement. She clutched her hair and looked in the mirror, her eyes wide. "What's happening to me? Am I crazy?"

_The first sign of going insane is talking to yourself, _the voice said snidely. She took a deep breath. Someone had to be playing some kind of a trick on her. But she looked around her. There was no one else in the small room.

"What are you?" she whimpered, huddling into the small corner. It didn't answer. She sighed. It figured. Right when she needed it, it didn't speak. "Answer me," she ordered, feeling silly. Maybe this is what lack of sleep did to a person.

_You could say I'm a voice_, it finally answered, and she jumped. _Make that _your_ voice. _She sat still, confused. What did it mean, a voice? She was hearing voices in her head? Was she going schitzo? She just didn't know. "Alright, so I have a voice in my head," she whispered, trying to stay calm. After all, this wasn't the first weird thing to ever happen to her. "No biggie."

"How long have you been living in my brain?" she asked in a small voice. She couldn't believe that she was holding a conversation with this…this…this _thing_. This little figment of her psychotic imagination. As usual, there wasn't an answer. Instead, it replied back with a completely different statement. _It would probably be better to hide this from Jeb at the moment. Sooner or later, you'll understand, Maximum. _

"How do you know my real name?" she asked, but she was rewarded with silence. The voice was gone. Make that_ her _Voice. Apparently it had fallen asleep, or just taken a break from her brain. And if she was stuck inside her own brain, she'd want to escape, too.

She shook her head and walked into the bathroom. As she ran a brush through her hair, she realized that it was real. It wasn't just a dream, or a prank. It was a real life problem. The only thing she could do was hope and pray that it went along with the wings, or she really was a schizophrenic. They had pills for that kind of thing.

She had a feeling that no amount of overdosing would fix _this _Voice.

* * *

When she walked out of the bathroom a few minutes later, the first thing that came to her mind was that unless the Voice was going to make any special appearances –it hadn't shown itself in seventeen years, for heaven's sake, it could and would most certainly wait-, she'd be stuck on a shopping trip, for hours, with her father.

Just what was she planning to _do_ for those hours? She didn't like talking to Jeb. These days, they didn't see eye-to-eye on anything, always fighting, and he knew she resented him. It wasn't as if she'd tried to hide it. _Help me, please_, she prayed to the Voice. _Don't leave me alone with him. _

She was almost convinced that she had heard chuckling somewhere behind her. _Oh, you are EVIL, _she glared. _I know you're in there somewhere. And when you come out, you are going to be punished. I'll be taking you to a psychiatrist, mister. _

And she got an idea. An evil, terrible, wonderful idea. Why ignore one, when you could ignore both? She grabbed the old iPod off the table and shoved the earphones in, turning the volume up until it almost hurt. She could drown out the voice, and Jeb.

She walked up the stairs nonchalantly, walked to the refrigerator and grabbed one of the leftover cheeseburgers from the fourth. As she waited for the microwave to go off, she sat at the kitchen table. _It's because you can't forgive yourself._

That had been the Voice that said that. And even though it had only just made itself known today, it already knew her better than she knew herself. She wanted to believe that it wasn't true. She wanted to believe that it wasn't her fault. But it was. It was all of her fault.

Her fault that her mother died, her fault that Jeb had been so heartbroken that he'd lost his job. Her fault that they were poor, that their family was falling apart at the seams. She complained and complained about it, looking for someone to blame, but never admitting that it was _her fault_.

It wasn't Jeb's fault. He fell apart _because _she took his wife away from him. And she hadn't meant to. But she hadn't even had to pay the price for her mistake. And she knew it.

For the first time since that day, she relived the death of her mother, her best friend, her favorite person in the world, maker of the best damn chocolate chip cookies you ever had. The iPod slipped to the floor as she clutched her face in her hands, tears slipping out of the cracks in her fingers.

It was _her _fault. That was all there was too it.

As Jeb walked around the corner, he saw Max's old blue iPod crash to the floor as she covered her eyes. At first, he was alarmed. Was something wrong with Max? And then he saw her shoulders shaking. He heard the sniffling. And all he did was stand in the doorway as his daughter cried, finally realizing what she'd done.

He left quietly. No one had ever seen Max in a time of weakness. Or at least, not a serious one. She'd tried so hard to make people believe she was almost indestructible. And he wouldn't tear down her wall now.

When he walked back into the kitchen, she was gone, but there was a note on the table. _Gone to buy Gazzy's present. You don't have to come, I'll get some extra groceries, too. I'll be back in an hour or so. –Max_

He rolled his eyes and threw the note down. She didn't have to do everything all alone. Sometimes it was alright to have a little help, even if it was from him. He grabbed his wallet off the counter before opening the front door and running after her.

* * *

Iggy flipped a page of his magazine, sitting by the cash register and looking bored as ever. Maintaining the illusion of being able to see was one thing, but he had no idea what kind of a magazine he was reading. _Please be something manly like a sports magazine, instead of a teen chick one with 'Bieber Fever' printed on the front_, he prayed.

Gazzy was back in the supply room, hunting through boxes of candy and wondering if he would get away with stealing some things. Considering that Iggy was blind, probably. But if they counted the merchandise, he was in trouble. He'd already had three Snickers bars.

The gas station had been quiet that day, with hardly anyone in and out. One woman had stopped in to buy a few cans of cat food like she always did, and a few teenage boys who had gone through puberty a little early had tricked Iggy out of some cigarettes –much to his dismay after finding out from Gazzy-, but that was about it.

Gazzy sighed and walked out of the back room, and sat at the small booth towards the back of the room, putting his feet up and pulling his hood over his head. His eyes closed slowly. He wasn't really tied, but there wasn't anything better to do around here than sleep.

"Why are you even here?" Iggy spoke up, breaking the silence. Gazzy looked up, confused. "I mean, shouldn't you be with Angel, like you are _every day_?" Gazzy reddened, and he was glad that Iggy couldn't see it.

"I'm not with her every day," Gazzy snapped. "I have better things to do than go to her mansion and have her boss me around."

"Whoa, Nelly," Iggy rolled his eyes. "Isn't this your friend you're talking about? You're always over there, and I know you two get along as well as Max does with Fang. So what's different about today? Did she finally get sick of you?"

"She didn't get sick of me," Gazzy mumbled and looked down.

"Do you like her?" Iggy asked quietly. Before Gazzy could answer, he spoke again. "What I mean is, do you _like _her, like her? I met her at the 4th of July party, Gaz. You're not going to get any criticism from me if you say yes. God knows I can't talk."

"So what if I did?" Gazzy asked, shrugging. "It doesn't matter anyway. I was going with Max for a while, but I can't keep it up. Her mom's a control freak, and it won't go anywhere even if I did like her. Plus," he looked down, "I'm a poor guy. We're trailer trash, and she's a princess. And it never works out that way."

"It could," Iggy said quietly, and Gazzy looked up at him. "Don't just give up because you don't think you're good enough. If you find someone who you think is right for you, no matter how young you are, don't you think you should try?"

"I wouldn't know what to say to her," Gazzy looked embarrassed. "I've never said anything like that to a girl. I don't know how to do it – you know, say that I like her."

"I can't tell you how," Iggy shrugged. "You have to do it yourself. But…don't just try to be cool. Girls hate that. If they've never been told that a guy likes them before…it's not very exciting if you just tell her that you 'like' her."

"I'm not sure I want to do this," Gazzy sighed.

"You can do it," Iggy grinned. "I know you can."

Gazzy groaned. What had he gotten himself into?

* * *

"Dylan, I need a double-chocolatey-chip frappuccino in two seconds!" someone shouted from behind the counter, and he looked up from where he'd been pouring chocolate chunks into the machine. "Got it!" he shouted, and grabbed one of the cups. Today, it was terribly crowded in the small Starbucks. It was a Saturday, after all.

Across the room, Max sat in silence, sipping her latte hesitantly. "You didn't have to follow me here," she said, not bothering to look at her father. Gazzy's present was in a bag at her side. She looked out at the other stores of the mall, other people hurrying by. And she wondered why her life couldn't be like that.

He was silent, and so was she. There was nothing to say. He looked out the window, trying not to make eye contact. What were they now? Friends? Enemies? He could never be sure if his _daughter _actually loved him or not. _It's not because I hate you. I want to forgive you, even though I know it's not your fault. But I just can't._

What did that mean?

"Alright," he said suddenly, glaring at her from across the table. "Max, let's just end this. I know that you hate me, and that you can't forgive me. I don't expect you to. But I…I can't change it!" His face was pained. "I know that it's my fault that she died. I know that. But I," his voice cracked, "I can't go back."

Max's heart thudded dully in her chest. "Y-Y-Your fault?" she stuttered, not believing it. All this time, she had blamed him, when it was his fault. He knew it wasn't. She was the one that had been careless and gotten her own _mother _killed. So why was it his fault all of a sudden?

"W-what are you talking about?" she stammered. "This whole thing is all of my fault!" she exploded. "Don't you get it? It's _my _fault that mom died! I was the one that caused it, and I just picked you to blame because you quit your job and we became poor! But this whole thing started with you!"

"Max, it wasn't your fault," he said softly, but she shook it off. It sounded like he was just trying to comfort her.

"It _is _my fault!" she almost screamed at him, but the place was far too crowded for anyone to hear her. "It's my fault." She lowered her voice. "We were on one of the most crowded streets in California. It was _my _birthday, so we were going to L.A. for a shopping trip."

She bit her lip to keep from crying, but her voice broke. "I shouldn't have been fighting with Gazzy. It was stupid. I was teasing him, and calling him a piggy because he had two cheeseburgers at McDonalds and I had one. Iggy was with Ella back at home. Y-You were asleep. Mom was driving."

A tear slipped from her eye. "Then it started to get personal. I told him that he'd never have a girlfriend, and started teasing him because he'd never kissed a girl, even though he was only 13. I could tell that I was upsetting him, and Mom told me to knock it off about five times. I ignored her, because it was my birthday, so I could do what I wanted."

She sniffled and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. "Then he made some crack about how Sam was probably cheating on me. And I thought we'd end up getting married. I was hurt, so I pushed him against the wall, he started cussing, and he pushed me, too. Before we knew it, we were in an all-out war, when I kicked the back of Mom's chair accidentally."

She bit her lip. "Mom snapped, like she always used to when the fighting got too far, she whirled around and looked at me, and told me that I was older, and that it was my seventeenth birthday, and that I should be more mature than Gazzy. The better person. She wasn't looking at the road."

He saw it in his mind, jolting awake and having no idea what was happening, as his wife died right there before him, and with his two children in the backseat looking worse than he'd ever seen them as they held each other and screamed.

"She slammed into the car in front of her," Max shuddered, remembering it, reliving it. "Gazzy and I hit the seats in front of us and held each other. You were thrown against the dashboard. I remember that your face was purple for a long time after that," she said softly.

"But Mom got it the worst. I fell forward, and my hand swung out, grabbing whatever it could. It ended up pressing down on the button to Mom's seat belt, so she wasn't protected when she fell forward." She was crying now. "A-and she rolled f-forward because without her seatbelt…well…" she trailed off.

She was surprised to look up and find him crying, too. "Did you ever stop to think that I blamed myself, too? If I hadn't been too tired to drive, I would have been in the driver's seat, and I would have gone through that window. And maybe things would have turned out differently."

She dropped the latte, and it crashed to the floor, but she couldn't bring herself to care. "Dad," she rubbed her eyes with her hand, "It's not perfect…but if I could go back and do it over, I wouldn't change a thing."

"Look, it may not be any of my business," a voice below her feet said, and she looked down to see a boy with dirty-blonde hair and deep eyes. "But I think that you both need to forgive yourselves. I know it's not easy. But I also know that your mom wouldn't have wanted you to beat yourself up over an accident," he smiled up at her, taking a washrag and cleaning up her spilled latte.

She should have been furious. She should have wanted to jump down his throat and scream at him. After all, what did he know about her family, and her mom? But what he said made sense. She smiled a watery smile at him, and he offered her his hand. She shook it.

"Max, I'm so sorry," Jeb said, and turned away. But before he could fully turn around, she threw her arms around him, and hugged him like she hadn't in months. And even though he was surprised, he hugged her back, his only daughter. Dylan smiled from his spot on the ground.

"I missed you so much, Dad," she whispered into his shoulder.

"I missed you too, Max."

* * *

**I'm finally back! I know it's been a while. I'm sorry if you're also reading my other stories, they're going to be on hiatus, at least for a month or so. But good news - updates for this story will likely be every weekend from now on. High school is actually surprisingly easy -except for p.e. ohmigod ohmigod hit by the football-. **

**I'd also like to point out that the SLIGHT SLIGHT Gazzy/Angel I'm working on is ONLY because they are not relateed in this story. In any other situation, I would NEVER approve of Gazzy and Angel being romantically involved with each other. It isn't meant to creep you all out. ^^;; It's going to be kind of a 'cutie' relationship, anyway. **

**Thanks for so many reviews! I can't believe that by the time I write the next chapter, I'll have over two hundred! ^^ You guys are the best! **

**~Rachel**


	16. Chapter 15

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 15 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted September 11th, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,920 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 14 | Angel - 13 | Dylan - 17/ The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews. _

* * *

The month of July was a short one. Gazzy's birthday came and went, and his shiny new guitar could be heard from every corner of the house on most occasions. Jeb and Max suffered though it happily. Iggy just prayed to God to trade his blindness for becoming deaf.

Days passed. Happy days, carefree days. Every day began with Iggy's blind driving to Fang's house, where every day there were new surprises in store for her. Every day Gazzy visited Angel, where he didn't notice the fact that she stared a little too long, or squeezed slightly when she held his hand.

Those days turned into weeks. Max faded into a comfortable routine. Every day was different, and the same. But to her, they were the best weeks of her life. She was with everyone that she loved, everyone important to her.

Still, she could sense a change in the air. She noticed how the leaves were starting to turn, and the days were shorter still. She noticed the first geese beginning to head south early, and she noticed the general fun of the summer winding down. Not to mention the many back-to-school advertisements on TV.

Summer was coming to an end.

Whether she liked it or not, she knew she had to face it. There would be a time, very soon, when Fang wasn't her first priority anymore. She'd crash into the routine of school instead of him. And she'd forget him.

One night, sitting on the front porch and feeling more lost than she ever had, she leaned into the porch swing and sighed, biting back tears. She didn't want to let go. She…she loved him, for God's sake. And she was beginning to think very seriously about _not _letting him go. Ever.

What if there was a way to keep him with her, always? Shouldn't she go for it, no matter what the cost? If she could keep Fang in her life, that was all that mattered. This had turned into so much more than a summer job. He'd become her whole world.

Her shoulders were shaking as sobs wracked her body. And suddenly, her shoulders were covered by that familiar arm. She couldn't bring herself to look up at her father. He already knew what was in her heart.

"You'll make the right decision, Max," he sighed, finally accepting it and letting her go. She was growing up. She already had. And she was leaving him. He knew that now. "I know," she replied shakily. He held her until the sun went down, and she fell asleep. He carried her inside.

After that, things became more complicated. Anne wouldn't give up. Fang had been smiling too much. He'd been kinder than he'd ever been. He was becoming a better person. And she knew that a girl had something to do with it. She just knew it.

Life wasn't perfect, but Max kept on flying. She kept up with work every day and maintained the charade as she tried to figure out the Voice, and the events that were unraveling. But she had Fang by her side through it all.

As Max fought her own battle, Iggy fought his. He was aware that he'd given Ella up, once and for all. She was everything that he'd ever wanted. But she just wasn't enough. For better or worse, his heart belonged to someone else.

Something was different. Day after day, the door to Iggy's gas station remained closed. No caramel-skinned angel walked through the door. And as he sat waiting, he realized he might have made the biggest mistake of all.

He hadn't appreciated a good thing when he had it. He hadn't treasured Nudge as he should have. And he hadn't told her how much she meant to him when he had the chance. Now he was paying the price.

_Come home, Nudge. Come home to me. _

* * *

"Oh my God, it's so late!" Max glanced at the clock and took one last bite of toast and a swig of orange juice. "Guys, I gotta run, or I'm gonna be late to work!" She leapt off the barstool, ran to the front door, and grabbed her purse off the coat rack.

"Hey, Ig, can you drive me?" she asked hopefully, tearing the boy away from his thoughts. He looked up and sighed. Her smile faded as she saw the look in his eyes. He didn't want to get near Nudge. He still didn't know what to do about her. "I'll walk," she corrected herself, and opened the door.

As she walked down the street, she thought about Nudge. She knew that the girl was probably confused. Sure, she had made up with Iggy at the fourth of July party, but that had been over three weeks ago, and she was still probably wondering what exactly she meant to Iggy.

"Don't wait too long, or you'll lose her," Max whispered to the thin air, hoping that even from back inside the house, Iggy would understand. "If you don't tell her how you feel now, she'll get sick of waiting. And you'll never know what could have happened."

_You shouldn't meddle in affairs that you have no part in, _she heard the familiar voice inside her head, and groaned. Not now. Anytime but now. She was having an okay morning. But lately, whenever the Voice got involved, it foreshadowed the inevitable doom of a torturous, unexpected catastrophe.

_Shut up! _She wondered how she looked from the outside, glaring up at her forehead, where she imagined said voice was resting. _Go away! Last time I heard you, I fell down the stairs! And the time before that, Fang slammed into my forehead trying to kiss me! _

The Voice didn't sound hurt. On the contrary, in fact, it sounded something close to amused. Of course, the Voice never betrayed any emotions. But this was close to humor. _Are you saying that you believe me to be bad luck, Maximum? _

_Stop talking? _she hissed internally. _And I didn't say that! All I meant was that you're like a theoretical omen of doom! I'm walking down the middle of the road! Right now, I could either be hit by a car or struck by lightning! _

The Voice paused. _Yes, Maximum, because it's _such _a stormy day outside_, it observed, and she growled at the perfect weather. The goddamn birds were even chirping. What was this, a Disney princess movie? _STOP TALKING! _she commanded, looking around nervously.

She sighed. Fang knew about the Voice, of course. But then, Fang knew about everything that was going on in her life. He was like her best friend, only more. And it was becoming clearer every day that she didn't have enough time with him. She didn't have much time left at all.

_You have more important things to be thinking about, _the Voice sounded like a mother. _Do you remember what I told you? _She rolled her eyes. How could she forget?

Lately, the Voice had been on a power-trip, claiming to have 'seen' glimpses of the future – _her _future. Like it knew something that she didn't. And quite frankly, it was scaring her. One minute it was reminding her that she wasn't the center of the universe, and the next, it was making references to 'the good of the world'…and one other very important thing.

The School had come up in conversation. Many times.

She didn't know why it had, or why it was even relevant. The School was a part of her past. It was a part that she would rather not speak of, or even remember. Sometimes, she still had nightmares. But the Voice insisted that meeting Fang, another winged mutant, was a foreshadowing of what would happen. Soon.

Looking up from her thoughts, her eyes focused just in time to see a familiar girl walking toward her. And before she could register the thought and stop, they slammed right into each other.

"Gah!" Max fell back against the pavement with a harsh thud, the concrete digging into her hands and drawing a faint amount of blood. Her forehead had collided with whoever it was, and she was starting to see stars whooshing around above her.

"Max?" she heard a curious voice somewhere off to her right, and manage to move her head ever so slightly. Nudge's blurry face came into view. "Max, are you alright? You look, like, stoned."

"Gee, thanks," Max rolled her eyes wearily. "Nudge, what are you doing here? You know your mom will kill you if you're out, and besides, you're not even in your neighborhood, _and _you…you…you came to see Iggy, didn't you?" She looked down at the girl, concern in her eyes.

"Yeah," Nudge said softly. "I'm not so sure about it, though." She pulled her knees to her chest. "I don't know what's going on with him. I thought I knew him. But everything's changing. All I know is that when I lost him, I felt like I lost…myself."

"You're confused." It wasn't a question.

"I don't know what to do, Max," she rested her head on her knees, tears pooling in her chocolate eyes. "I'm scared. And I don't know what I did wrong." She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. "But I don't want that time…all that time talking to Iggy and getting to know him…I don't want that to end."

Before she knew it, Max had grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet. _I'm so getting fired for this, _she thought. "Come on, Nudge. We have some things to talk about."

* * *

Dylan winced as the familiar pain shot up his body. No matter how strong it made him, the injections of the serum always made him feel as weak as a rag doll. And they made him feel used, as if he wasn't strong enough on his own.

His wrists and ankles were locked onto the table as the serum continued to flow through the needle and into his bloodstream, the electrical shocks intensifying with each passing second as he stared up at the ceiling of the lab, his grey prison.

He cried out in pain, and it was almost too much to bear. His chest felt like it was exploding, every nerve in his body reacting with the serum and crying out in protest. He always rejected it, and it _always _hurt.

Traitor tears slipped from his eyes as he grabbed the stone table under him for support. He was doing it for the mission, for Dr. Gunther-Hagen. He had to remember that, at all costs. His fingers slipped and he cried out again as another shock wracked his body.

As the reaction started to wind down and the needle was removed from his forehead, and his wrists and ankles were released. He didn't even have the strength to roll over. Breathing raggedly and still jerking from the reaction, he was left writhing on the table.

The door clicked open, and Doctor Gunther-Hagen walked in, admiring his work. Already, the muscles in Dylan's arms were growing, and it was taking less and less time for Dylan to stop shaking violently after every session. The boy was growing stronger.

"It's almost complete, Dylan," he said softly, and the boy struggled not to feel the deepest level of contempt for the man who had practically raised him. Dr. Gunther-Hagen had assured him that they were going to save the world together. But it didn't feel like saving the world.

Dylan forced himself to sit up, and he almost couldn't make it as his spine protested in agony, throbbing brokenly. He wiped the sweat off his forehead with his sweaty hand. "Do you remember the mission?" Dr. Gunther-Hagen asked him.

"Kill Maximum Ride," Dylan replied in a monotone, his voice raspy and sounding like a stranger, even to him. And Dr. Gunther-Hagen smiled. "Good boy," he grinned, and turned around, heading for the door.

Dylan hadn't believed it when it had turned out to be her in the coffee shop. His whole life, he'd been waiting to kill the infamous Maximum Ride, training to destroy her cruel beauty, her leadership and her very soul. But then he had met her, and it had changed his life.

She was everything that he could never be. She was naturally strong, a real human, not to mention with a heart of gold and only the best intentions for the people she loved. She was everything he wanted to be. Everything he could never have. And it drove him insane.

"Stop," he managed to say, and Dr. Gunther-Hagen froze. "Stop," he repeated again, struggling for the right words. "I don't want to be your tool," he glared, the emotion of anger so foreign to him, but for the first time bubbling up inside of him. Dr. Gunther-Hagen remained emotionless.

"I don't want to be this person you've created!" he shouted, the very emotion of anger coursing though his veins, in his bloodstream. In his eyes, in his voice. Finally, anger. "I don't want to be this monster!"

Dr. Gunther-Hagen turned around, a smile on his face. "My dear Dylan," he grinned slightly. "I'm afraid that it isn't your choice to make." He walked through the door, and it was slammed behind him.

And it was silent again, leaving Dylan alone to think.

* * *

Angel was puzzled.

There was something she couldn't understand, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Every day, Gazzy came over with Max. And every day, she spent all her time with him. He was her best friend, her constant companion, and it was just her, Gazzy, and the enormous house. The three amigos.

But today, he seemed distant, like he was far away. She was having trouble reading his mind, because his thoughts were getting more and more conflicted with each passing minute. And she knew that he was having a mental battle of sorts. But for the life of her, she couldn't figure out what it was all about.

"So what do you want to do today?" she asked after fifteen minutes of silence. They were sitting in one of the secret corridors of the house, one that only she knew about, of course. It was tricky to get into, because the only entrance was through a door under the kitchen sink. But when they were inside, it was a world of history that they didn't know about.

The house itself was over three hundred years old. It had been remodeled many times to suit each generation's tastes, but you couldn't just pave over the unknown. This was the only part of the house from back when it was new, an eighteenth century wonder.

"Let's just look around," he replied distractedly, and she bit back a groan. He'd been like this ever since this morning. Strangely, he'd gotten here without Max, and she could tell that he was lying when he'd told her mother that she was at one of his doctor's appointments –for that strange illness that he didn't have-.

She couldn't understand why whenever she was with him, he wasn't just one of her slave monkeys that she wanted to force to dance or act silly for her amusement. He was her friend, and he was pure, and sweet, and unaffected by her wealth or power.

He just wanted _her. _And, needless to say, it was different from what she usually got. Over time, she'd started to just want _him, _too. She tried extra hard to say funny things, so he'd smile. She tried to think of new schemes for him, so he'd grin.

And even though she had her own personal stylist, she practically owned the entire make-up section from any self-respecting salon, and not to mention pale, flawless skin, sparkling eyes as if sent from heaven, and perfect light blonde hair, she always wanted _him_ to comment on it. Not like he actually did.

Was she falling for him? She couldn't answer that.

She shook it off and followed him down the corridor, looking at the ancient flooring, Victorian wallpaper and crown molding. Along with all the history just from the interior, there were also many, many things that had been scribbled on the wall over past centuries.

There were drawings that some lone artist had obviously spent hours on, scribbling them into the walls. There were secrets, as if from the pages of a diary, that the owner believed couldn't be trusted with anyone else. There were messages, and dreams, and so many people just like her that had been here.

Gazzy stopped walking to examine a section of the wall. She followed him. In just the one corner, on no other part of the wall, were a fair amount of initials. Surrounding the initials were hearts. Hundreds of them. _E + W. S + R. K + T. _They were all right there.

He gulped. This was it.

"Angel," he began, turning around to face her. And for once, she was afraid. Not that he'd hurt her. But that she could lose him. "I've known you for a while now." He paused. "You could say…that we're friends."

She fought with herself. Where was her cool? "Y-Yeah," she mustered up some courage, punching him on the shoulder slightly. "I'd hope so."

He turned away. Why was this so hard to do? "T-There's this girl I really, really like," he began, searching for her initial reaction. "I feel like I know her pretty well. But I don't just want to be her friend."

She didn't know why she felt like she'd just been punched in the gut. If Gazzy was her friend…then she should be happy that he'd finally found someone that he could trust enough. But he'd just made it clear…that she was _only _his friend. And for some reason, that stung.

"I need to know if she likes me as much as I like her." His voice was wavering. Whoever this girl was had him really upset, and that made her angry. She wanted to go to that girl's house and kick her in the face for the way she was hurting Gazzy.

_Of course she likes you just as much. Who wouldn't? You're not rich, but you're perfect! You haven't been corrupted, you're the kindest person I've ever met, and you have a heart as big as my mom's ego! Stop worrying so much! _She couldn't say it. She just couldn't bring herself to comfort him. She was just that selfish.

Suddenly, he whirled around, and he was so close to her that she closed her eyes out of pure instinct. She felt his eyelashes flutter against her forehead as he placed a soft kiss on her cheek, and she looked up in surprised. And he gathered all of his courage.

"I like you, Angel!"

She felt a warm happiness spread through her body, but on the outside, she was just as shocked as he was. When he searched for a reaction in her face and found none, he looked at the ground.

And he was surprised when she stepped forward, stood on her toes and kissed his own cheek. When she pulled away, her eyes were sparkling.

"I think I like you, too."

* * *

The warm air brushed around Nudge's shoulders as a few leaves slowly drifted down from the trees. The first leaves to fall. The first leaves to announce that summer was ending and it was time to move forward. But she wasn't sure that she could. She just didn't know anymore.

She looked around her. A few weeks ago, she and Iggy had been here, laughing and walking. He'd taught her what it was like to see how he saw things. She'd really loved him. She still loved him. But when someone steps on your heart, how do you find a way to forgive them?

Max broke the silence. "Iggy told me that when he brought you here, he told you to cover your eyes, and listen to the sounds around you. To see how he sees." Nudge nodded, trying not to remember. She failed. "But I don't think he really told you how he sees."

Nudge looked up, puzzled, as Max continued. "He's blind, but he's able to live like a normal human, for the most part. He barely seems handicapped. But we have to remember that even though he makes it look easy, it isn't. He hates it. If he could change it, he would."

Max sighed. "He's never seen anything. He's learned from shapes how things look like, but he doesn't really know. I can't explain colors to him. I can't explain faces to him. Every day, he relies fully on trust. Trusting that he'll be okay. Trusting that Gazzy, Dad and I can lead the way for him." A tear slid down her face.

"He's also trusting you. He's known you for two months, but he really thinks he can trust you, and he's right. But there's still a part of him that doubts. It took a lot of courage for him to give up Ella, someone who's totally familiar to him, for you. You're new. You're a little…dangerous to him." Nudge didn't protest.

"Iggy won't ever see his bride on his wedding day. He won't ever see the faces of his children. He won't get to watch them grow up. This changed his life, right from the moment that he was born. He's always full of doubts. And now, he's doubting you."

Max looked straight at Nudge. "You need to make sure he knows exactly how important to you he is. He needs to know that he shouldn't have doubts, because you love him. And he needs to know that if he takes the risk of loving you…you won't let him fall."

Nudge nodded. "Thank you, Max." She stood up. "Tell my mom that I'm lost, and that you were late because after Gazzy's 'appointment', you were looking for me." Max shrugged, not even caring what the heck that meant.

"Where are _you _going?" Max asked.

"I'm going to get the guy I love back," she replied. "If you ever need anything…you can talk to me. I know I'm younger, but you can talk to me. Because…I want to be there for you…like you were here for me."

And she was gone, leaving Max alone in the wind.

When the door to Iggy's gas station opened, he didn't notice that it was Nudge, although he prayed with all his might that it would be. He wanted to hold her in his arms, wanted to tell her that he loved her, and that he missed her so damn much.

So when her voice crashed down on him, his eyes widened.

"Hi, Iggy," she said softly. And in seconds, he was around the counter, right in front of her, his lips on hers. She couldn't fight it as her hands found their way into his hair and her arms wrapped around his neck, because she missed this more than anything.

"I don't care what happened before," she whispered. "Iggy, I missed you so much."

He pulled back to look at her, or just imagined that he could. "I made a mistake, letting you go like that," he growled, and her heart thudded in her chest. "But I'll never make that mistake again. I'll never leave you again. I love you. And I know that now."

And she kissed him again.

"Finally," she sighed, content.

* * *

**Oh my gosh! I'm actually updating on schedule! :D Awesomeness. If you're wondering how long the story will be, we're not even close to the end, sorry! For all of you who review asking if this is the last chapter, STOP. Did I not tell you I have more plot twists? xD **

**So what did you think of the Gazzy/Angel? I'm having a tough time thinking of their teenage selves!**

**Please take a moment to remember what happened on September 11, 2001.**

**~Rachel**


	17. Chapter 16

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 16 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted September 18, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,970 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 15 | Angel - 13 / The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

* * *

Slowly, July faded into August, and the six children faded into a comfortable routine. Every day was a new one, a different one, and yet the same. They didn't mind. But one thing was becoming increasingly clear – summer was coming to an end. Fang, Nudge and Angel would be staying the same, and Max, Iggy and Gazzy would be changing. Leaving.

So while they could, they vowed to make the most of it.

Every day, Gazzy went to the large house to see Angel. They became inseparable, spending day after day in their place in the secret passage, talking and laughing just as they used to. Nothing had changed, because everything was the same. They were still the best of friends, even if they were romantically involved. They were each other's' first loves.

Every day, Nudge stopped by Iggy's gas station, loving it most when there were no people, when it was quiet. Some days, they would sit and talk about nothing at all. Some days, Nudge would wonder exactly what was happening between her and the blind boy. And during that time, he taught her to see without her eyes.

And every day, Max went to work at Fang's house. The hours were long and the work was tedious, but it was always worth it when she snuck away with him at lunchtime to go flying high over the world with him, their wings just inches apart as they flew hand-in-hand.

On one of those days, Max walked through the front door, feeling particularly happy, as she generally was whenever Fang told her that he loved her. Gazzy followed her in, walking to the fridge and grabbing a juice pouch out of the door.

"Oh, look and mister big and bad," Max snickered, and he looked up. "You're manly enough to date Angel all of a sudden, and at the same time, you can still live with yourself when you grab a juice box and sit in front of your DS playing Lego Star Wars."

He reddened. "You just don't like the fact that I'm dating her," he raised an eyebrow. "You're mad because now you can't tease me about not having a girlfriend. Meanwhile, your need to tease someone has dried up now that I'm not your punching bag."

Max shrugged. "No, that's not it. I have Iggy for that." She walked to the counter and dropped her bag. "But I am kind of freaked out about you dating Angel." He grinned, and she slapped him upside the head. "Come on, think about it. Don't you think it's a little weird? She's Fang's sister."

Gazzy shrugged. "Why is it weird?" he asked, and then it dawned on him. "Oh. _Oh. _Ew, God. That's nasty," he shuddered, and she nodded. "If you ever…that is, if you and Fang ever…you know, get together, Angel and I will be like…"

"Family?" she asked, and he gagged. She smiled and rolled her eyes. "This is where it gets weird. If Iggy and Nudge hook up, it'll be fine, because she's adopted. But Angel is Fang's real sister. Cue the southern jokes," she grimaced.

He sighed. "Max, I'll be honest," he looked up at her. "I don't really care."

She sat down next to him, seeing that he was serious. "Gazzy, what do you mean, you don't care?"

"I mean I don't care!" he exclaimed, frustrated. "You're always putting me down, making me seem younger than I am. I know we're family, and you're supposed to do it, and all," he sighed. "But you never take me seriously. I really like Angel! She makes me laugh. She makes me happy."

"I'm sorry," she said softly, and sighed. "I know you're serious. I know because everyone expects this thing between Fang and me to end, but I don't want it to. I want him to stay with me forever. I love him more than anything else in the world."

Gazzy nodded thoughtfully. "Do you ever wish that you guys would get married?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I don't know. I've thought about it. But I don't see how it would work. His mom will never, ever let him go. If I was to marry into that…I'd be stuck there, just like he is. I'd lose my freedom. I'd lose my own self-respect." She sighed.

"What I want is…to be with him, just the two of us, in a house for normal people, where I can see him as he really is, not what his mom wants him to be. I want him to just be himself, not what he has to be. I want what Sam offered me. But I want it with Fang."

He nodded. "I won't tell anyone, you know," he looked up at her. "But Max, you don't have a lot of time left. Soon, school will start, and you'll have to lose him if you aren't careful." He dug in his pocket and opened a wrinkled piece of paper.

She inspected it closely. It was the back to school notice. And the first day was a week and a half away. "I know you aren't ready for this," Gazzy said as she swallowed hard. "But you have to be. And you have to make sure that you don't lose Fang when school starts."

"Sometimes you're so grown-up that you scare me," she smiled wryly, but it faded. "I've got to find a way to tell him, to make him understand. I have to do it soon." But she knew in her heart that she couldn't. She couldn't let this be the end. Telling him meant that it was over.

_Why does summer have to end? _

* * *

The next day, Iggy found himself on the front steps of the large house. Or at least, what he hoped was Nudge's house. With blindness, one could only hope that they were at the right place. Otherwise, you ended up being chased by a fat man waving a baseball bat at you like you were a piñata.

He sure hoped that didn't happen again.

He lifted his fist to the door and felt around for the doorbell, eventually stumbling across it. What would he do if Nudge didn't answer the door? He hadn't really considered it when he'd just spontaneously come over without anyone to guide his way. It was a good thing that he'd learned how to drive.

"Oh, hi," he heard a small voice about a foot and a half below him as the door opened. Well, it couldn't be Nudge. "You're Iggy," Angel looked up at him, craning her neck. "You were at that fourth of July party. I'm Angel," she grabbed his hand and shook it.

A lazy smile spread across his face. He opened his mouth to speak, but she interrupted him. "If you're about to make a crack about how I'm seeing Gazzy, I'll strangle you with your own tongue," she said sweetly, and he felt his jaw drop. _That's scary,_ he thought uneasily.

"You're here to see Nudge, right?" she asked, reading his mind again. He nodded meekly. "Well, she's in the shower," Angel informed him. "So you can either wait or leave. I'd prefer the latter, personally."

He looked down at her skeptically. "You're not a very nice little short person," he said dryly. "I'll wait for her."

"Okay," Angel shrugged. "But just so you know, she takes _really _long showers. So you'll probably be here for another half an hour at least." She grabbed his hand. "Okay, blind guy. We're going inside now, try not to trip over anything. My mom isn't a big fan of blood on the floor."

"God, you're like a miniature Max," he muttered. She flashed him a grin. "I talk to her a lot when she's over here. But since it's around lunch time, they're off flying in their own little world." They both rolled their eyes. She grinned and plopped him down on the couch.

"So, are you and Nudge, like, boyfriend and girlfriend now?" she asked expectantly, taking a seat next to him. "Yes, it is my business," she answered his thoughts. He rolled his eyes, but looked away.

"That hasn't really been established yet," he answered uncomfortably. "I'm not sure what we are. She still comes in to see me, and I guess I really like her, but I'm not sure where to go from here," he replied tiredly.

"Well, here's an idea for you, genius," she snorted. "Why don't you just take her out on a date?"

He laughed. She could have answered his thoughts, but she thought she'd let him have this one. "Nudge, on a date with me? Please. She's used to all of this! Anywhere I take her would make me look like a cheap son of a bitch who's taking advantage of her."

"True," Angel answered, and he glared. "But you're forgetting who Nudge wants to be." Iggy sent her a questioning look. She sighed. "Well, if I _must _explain it to you." She took a deep breath.

"Nudge told you that she doesn't want this life! She wants to be like you, free and normal, even if it meant losing all of this. She wants to know what it's like to be you. She wants to feel like a regular girl. So I bet that if you just took her on a normal date, she'd like it a lot."

"What do you mean, a normal date?"

She sighed, looking deep into his mind. "Iggy, you're very sweet, but I hate having to explain all of this to you. Look, going for pizza and a walk and maybe spending some time talking to Ella made you happy, right?"

"How do you know about Ella?" he asked suspiciously.

"Never mind!" she exclaimed, exasperated. "Just answer the question! Didn't it make you happy?"

"I guess," he nodded, and she smiled. "Exactly. Nudge wants to feel that happy, normal feeling. So do something like that with her, and she'll love you forever. But just try with her. I can tell that she really wants to go out with you. Like, make it official that you're her guy."

"Hey, guys! What's up?" Nudge asked as she skipped down the stairs. "Hey, Iggy, why are you talking to Angel?" she asked curiously. "You weren't talking about me behind my back, were you? I hate that," she said sourly. Angel grinned.

"No, no," Iggy said quickly. "We were talking about how disgusting it was that Angel is going out with my brother." Angel glared.

"Tongue. You. Strangle. With," she whispered, and he shuddered. "Come on, Nudge, let's go," he stood up and grabbed her hand, leading her away. "Oh, and thanks, Angel, for the help," he said over his shoulder. Angel smiled as Nudge gave him an odd look and went on her way.

_Now, if Gazzy could just be that open with me, _she thought glumly.

* * *

Hours later, Gazzy wondered just why he was at the mansion in front of him. This was the tenth day in a row that he'd seen Angel, and even she needed a break from him sometimes. But he knew that summer was ending, and if he didn't spend time with her now, he would miss it later.

He pressed the doorbell, his hands shaking. He didn't want to give her up. He knew that change was inevitable, but he still hoped that it wasn't true. She was his best friend, his constant companion, his partner in time. And now that summer was over…so was she.

The door opened, and he was expecting to see Angel standing there. But instead, it was Nudge who answered the door, peering down at him curiously. "Hey, you're Max's little brother," she recalled. "Come on in."

"Thanks," he said hollowly, and stepped inside. "So where's Iggy?" he asked curiously. "I thought you'd be with him today."

She laughed. "I thought so, too. But right when things were getting good, if you know what I mean, Fang called and said that my mom was looking for me. So I had to race back here." She chuckled at his grimace. "What about you? Are you looking for Angel?" He nodded.

"Well, she's grounded for the day, so you can't see her," she replied. "Mom found another snake in her dresser drawer, so she's locked in her room, which is hardly a punishment." She inspected him curiously. "Hey, what's wrong? You've looked kind of down ever since you came in. Are you okay?"

He sighed. "No," he answered gloomily. "Now that summer's almost over, I won't get to see Angel very much anymore. You don't have to worry, because Iggy works, and you can sneak out to see him just like you always do. But I'm trying to figure out a way to tell Angel that I still want us to be together after school starts. I really like her a lot."

Nudge's eyes lit up. "Ooh, this is interesting," she chirped. "I know that Angel really likes you, too. You're kind of too young to go on a date, but…" she paused, thinking. "How about you get her a nice gift? Girls always like that."

Gazzy looked up at her. "Really?" he asked, tilting his head to the side.

She nodded. "Really. Now, with a girl like me, you can pretty much get her something sparkly and call it good. I know I like stuff like that," she grinned, showing off her necklace, earrings and other accessories.

She looked thoughtful. "But for someone like Angel, I think you need to put a little more thought into something like that. She really likes things that mean something, that have sentimental value. So why don't you get her something that speaks to her soul or some crap like that?"

He grinned, but sighed. "I wouldn't know what to get her," he looked down. "I mean, it's not that I don't have money. I've kind of been saving. But it's just that I have no idea what girls like."

"Ooh, ooh! I come with you and help you pick something out!" she said excitedly. He gave her an odd look. "Oh, come on, please? I haven't been to the mall, like, ever, but at least I know what Angel would like! Come on, come on, take me with you!"

He looked up at the ceiling and sighed. "God, if you're there, shoot me now," he prayed. Nothing happened as Nudge sat there, her eyes pleading. _Great, apparently God isn't there. Today, the earth is being controlled by some apocalyptic voodoo monkey in the sky. _"Okay, Nudge, come on. We're going to the mall."

"Yes!" she jumped up, and several servants eyed her strangely. She grimaced. "Oh, right, I forgot about them. Listen, say goodbye to me and then go outside like you never talked to me. I'll meet you in two minutes on the other side of the gate."

"Err…goodbye?" he said, slightly confused. In a flash, she had disappeared up the stairs. "Girls are crazy," he muttered, and walked through the front door, back down the driveway. When he reached the edge of the property, she was there to meet him. "Let's go," she directed, and they were off.

Half an hour later, they were walking through the mall, with absolutely no destination, just window-shopping. "So what do you think Angel would like?" Gazzy asked after a while. Nudge didn't answer. She was just taking it all in.

The mall was huge. It was something she'd never seen before, only imagined. There were so many things to buy. Things that celebrities endorsed, things that were shiny, things that were new. And even though she could just order whatever she wanted online, there was just something about walking through a mall that made her eyes light up.

"Well, clothes might seem a bit too much," Nudge observed. "And it's not like you're getting her a wedding ring or anything." She looked around, her eyes resting on a jewelry store. "Hey, let's look in there! Girls love sparkly things!" she cried, and dragged him into the store.

"Yeah. Because I have three hundred dollars stockpiled under my mattress," he said dryly, observing the prices. "Nudge, most of this stuff is way too expensive for me. Think along the lines of something a fifteen-year-old boy can buy."

"I thought you were fourteen," she said absently as she searched through the racks of necklaces.

"I had a birthday since the fourth of July," he explained. "Anyway, what do you think I should get her?"

"A necklace would probably be the best thing," she said thoughtfully. "Come on and help me find one." Slowly, they began to search the entire store for the perfect necklace for Angel. Gazzy thought about what she'd said. _A necklace that means something. Something sentimental. _

"What exactly would you like her to know?" Nudge asked as she sorted through the shelves upon shelves of necklaces. Gazzy scratched his head thoughtfully. "I guess I'd like her to know that even though we're kind of young, I don't like her any less. I still really like her. Max thinks I like her more than I should."

"Hey," they said at the same time, their eyes falling on a sign near the cash register. _Make your own necklace, $65_, it read, and they both looked at each other, nodding. "That's perfect," Nudge smiled. "It's not too expensive and not too cheap. And you can personalize it. Make it yours."

He nodded, and they stepped up to the machine that did it, looking at all of the designs. And their eyes rested on the same one. "That's it. That's perfect."

* * *

_This is it. I have to tell him, _Max thought as she sat on the roof of one of the buildings in town with him. She didn't want to bring it up, but she knew she had to gather her courage. Fang deserved to know, especially since it appeared that he was under the allusion that he'd still see her just as much once she was in school.

"I need to talk to you about something," she said, and looked up, surprised to hear him saying the same thing. "Um, you can go first," she bit her lip. _Sure, let's save the best news for last, _she thought tiredly. _Even in my brain, I'm sarcastic. _

"Well, I know that we're only seventeen, and not even adults yet, and everyone expects us to just give up on each other," Fang began, sounding worried. _Change is inevitable, Max, _said a voice inside her head. She groaned internally. _Not now, Voice! Go back to sleep! _

"I know that the summer's coming to an end," Fang continued as the Voice chuckled darkly. _I was never asleep, Max. I'm not human. I don't need to sleep. _She bit her lip. _Voice, you're bad luck. Last time you talked to me, Gazzy ran into me and drenched me in iced tea. And let's not forget that time with Nudge, _she thought coldly.

_What are you getting at, Maximum? _the Voice asked snidely. "It's just that I want you to know that I don't care if we don't see each other every day. It's not like it's forever," Fang continued. Max felt horrible. Fang was actually sharing his feelings and she was more concerned with what the Voice was saying.

_I'm not getting at anything! It's just that you know you're bad luck, I know you're bad luck, and I have my feet dangling over the edge of a building! This is not a good situation! _she screamed at it. "Oh, that's nice, Fang," she said absently, wanting him to think that she was listening. He gave her an odd look.

_You have wings, Maximum. What's the worst thing that could happen? _the Voice asked calmly. Max sighed. "Max, are you alright?" Fang asked curiously as Max stared off into space and glared slightly. _I don't know, but when you're around, I'm sure I can think of something. _

"Max?" Fang asked again. "Yes?" she looked up at him. He looked at her curiously. "Are you alright? You seem kind of out of it."

"Me? Out of it? Nooooooooo," she said slowly. "Why would I be? I've been listening to you the whole time. Please, continue!" Her left eye twitched slightly.

"Okay…" he said uneasily. _You are so smooth, _the Voice stated, sounding quite happy with itself. "Anyway, Max, I just want you to know that you're really important to me, and I would never let something like your school come between us." _Shut up, Voice! I'm trying to have a conversation here! _

"Uh-huh. I love you, too, Fang," she said in that same absent voice His eyes narrowed. _Careful, Maximum. Fang's getting upset. You might want to focus on him instead of the talking voice in your head. _"I didn't say that…" he almost groaned.

"Sorry, honey, what didn't you say?" she asked, trying to pay attention while still communicating with the termite in her brain. _Then stop talking to me! You started it! _She struggled not to glare furiously at the "Voice". "Never mind," Fang answered angrily.

_Did you ever think that perhaps you should explain me to Fang? _the Voice asked. She struggled not to roll her eyes.

_I just can't tell him right now. We have too much to deal with without me having to explain you. And anyway, he'll just worry. I'd go square-dancing with my dad sooner than I'd tell Fang about you. Now shut up! _She looked back at Fang. "Fang, I'm so sorry. I'm just really confused."

"About what?" he asked, sounding impatient and hurt.

"I just don't know what's going to happen after I go back to school. I don't want to lose you, especially to any other girl." There. She said it. He gaped. "It's always someone. First Brigid and now me. I just don't want you to get my hopes up and then crush them."

"Max," he began, but she interrupted him.

"If you don't want to be with me, than just tell me now! I've had enough of this 'I love you' stuff! If you really love me, you won't forget me when I go away. You won't leave me."

"Max-"

"No!" she exclaimed. "It won't be your fault, it'll just happen." She looked down. "I don't like this. I hate this feeling vulnerable. But if you're going to make me feel this way…then I can't do anything about it but hope that you're telling the truth."

"Max!" he shouted, and took her hands in his. "Max, I love you, and I'm sorry about all those other girls," he looked her straight in the eye. She gulped. "I loved you since I met you, and I don't want you to go! But if you have to go, I'm not going to lose you!"

He looked down. "I can't change what happened in the past. But I can tell you what'll happen in the future. I promise never to leave you, ever."

"R-Really?" she asked, her voice shaking. He nodded. "Really. I promise not to lose you."

And he leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. She looked up at him, her eyes swimming with doubts. "If you're telling the truth," she stammered, "If you're telling the truth, then promise me, and…and kiss me again." He leaned down, his face inches from hers.

"I promise." And he pressed his lips to hers. She went with it, knowing that she should have told him. But she couldn't. She just couldn't tell him that she'd most likely not see him again, unless he was willing to sneak out of his house all the time to see her.

But she'd have this moment. Just this moment, to remember, when she was gone.

* * *

**Ah, it's so good to have a schedule for updating. I feel so...organized? xD Anyway, things are going to be fluffy and stuff in the next chapter, and then you get more drama and angst after that. More plot twists ahead! And yes, they involve Dylan...kind of. And more of the characters come in! Oh noes xD This story's about to get a whole lot more interesting. **

**Thanks, _Birdwatched_, for noticing the number of words in each chapter. I didn't think anyone really read that. And thanks, Elizabeth, for all the reviews. :) **

**Now, I really should be finishing that homework assignment and studying for that test. Peace out, **

**~Rachel**


	18. Chapter 17

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 17 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted September 25, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,934 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 15 | Angel - 13 / The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

* * *

Nudge crawled out of her window stealthily, her hair blowing around her face in the already-cool air. Her hair was straightened and up in a high ponytail, and she had tried to dress as normally as possible, but it had been difficult.

She had managed to find an old pair of jeans in her closet, and despite the flashy design, they had faded considerably. In the back of the closet, she had found some regular tennis shoes that Max had bought for her a while ago.

Granted, she hadn't been able to find a single non-formal shirt in her closet, but she had managed to talk Fang into letting her borrow one of his less depressing shirts, one depicting a skull with a crack running straight over its head. Lovely.

Fang popped out of the window next to her as she climbed onto the tree branch. "I expect you to be home by eleven-thirty," he said strictly, having rehearsed various excuses to tell his mother regarding where Nudge had gone off to.

"Yeah, yeah," she replied, anxious to leave. But he wasn't finished yet. "If he's rude to you, leave. If he tries to take advantage of you, slap him. And please, _please _don't _try anything _with him. You're wearing _my _shirt!"

She blushed and cast him a dark look. "I wasn't planning on 'trying anything' at all! I'm only sixteen!" she protested. "Anyway, it'll be fine! He's Max's brother! Don't you trust him at all?"

"No," Fang answered promptly. "I've never talked to him, really. I met him at the Fourth of July party, but I don't know him. So be careful, just in case he's, you know, a serial rapist or something."

"Is that your loving way of telling me you're worried about me?" she asked cheerfully, and he looked away. "Right, right, I have to go," she remembered, and began crawling down the tree. "Cover for me, Fang, I mean it!" was all she said before she disappeared into the night.

The last thing Fang thought was that he was proud of her, as he watched his sister –and his shirt- disappear off down the driveway.

Once Nudge hit the ground, she took off running, cutting through the darkness as usual. It was getting darker in the sky, so even though it was only seven o'clock, the sun was fading from the sky. No one would see her.

Just beyond the wrought-iron fence, she could see Iggy waiting just where they'd agreed to meet. She ducked through the rosebushes and walked through the gate quickly, stopping to make sure no gardeners were around. They weren't, as this was around the time of year that they let the garden die.

"Nudge?" Iggy asked, turning around to stare in the general direction of the source of the noise. She glared. "Don't say that! What if had been someone else? What would they think if they heard my name coming from your mouth?"

"Sorry," he held up his hands in surrender. "I apologize for my blindness getting in the way of your lying to everyone in your household," he said sarcastically, and she hit him on the shoulder.

"That's no way to start a first date," she said as they started walking. She smiled. She still couldn't believe that she and Iggy were finally…together? Sighing, she walked along. What exactly were they now?

He'd told her that he loved her, that much was obvious. But sometimes people said things that they thought they meant, when, in reality, they didn't feel that way at all. And even though he'd sounded sure of himself…what if she had been wrong about him?

Just once, she wished she had Max's life. A normal life, where she could be completely sure that the guy she loved was hers. She wanted to have a life that wasn't perfect, but some things made it worth it in every way. And she didn't have that.

She couldn't ever have that.

They continued walking, down the city streets, looking up at tall buildings and small restaurants, past faded apartments and green parks. They walked past small houses, watching children play. She saw everything that she wanted, and couldn't ever have.

She saw him, too, and began to wonder if he was one of those things. And she thought that because he was blind, he wouldn't notice the silence. She thought wrong.

He grabbed her hand, and she looked up, surprised. "I meant what I said that day," he looked down at her. "Stop thinking too much into things. Stop trying to find a problem when there isn't one. I love you. That's all there is to it."

She gaped. "I thought you were supposed to be blind," she complained. "How did you know?"

He smiled. "I know that when you're not talking at light speed, something's wrong," he replied. She frowned and looked away. "But I like it about you," he tilted her chin back to face him, and she wondered briefly how he knew _that_.

"Stop thinking," he repeated, but she didn't know if she could. For once, she couldn't reply. Her voice had failed her.

And then every doubt in her mind vanished when he leaned down to kiss her. "Stop thinking," he whispered once again. She nodded vaguely before following him down the street. Even for a day, she decided, being normal had its advantages.

* * *

Twenty minutes after Nudge left, Fang gave up trying to teach her turtle to do tricks, and walked into her bathroom, deciding that it was a good time to start the illusion that Nudge was really at home. He and Nudge had set it all up last night.

Once inside, he walked to her shower and turned it on, full blast. He thought briefly that if the environmentalists of the world would kill him if they were to see him right then. Walking out of the bathroom, he grabbed Nudge's laptop off the desk, and carried it back in.

He typed in her password, which he'd figured out by way of Angel, and opened up a particular file. The day before,he and Nudge had made several recordings of her singing in the shower, which she never failed to do on a daily basis. He pressed play on the recording, which would go on for about twenty minutes and then repeat.

When he walked out, he shut the door behind him. Nudge took the longest showers of anyone in the house, around forty-five minutes at best. Not that they couldn't afford it, of course. He had around an hour until he'd have to start the second stage of the plan.

He flopped down on Nudge's bed, suddenly too tired even to walk down the hall to his own room. He looked at the fluffy pink ceiling, trying to control his urge to throw up from the general girliness of the is room. And he had some serious time to think.

Nudge was growing up, and he had to face the reality sooner or later. Everything was changing now that it was the end of the summer. Their lives were finally coming together. But at the same time, sometimes he felt like he was being left behind.

And Max…he just wouldn't have Max with him for much longer. He didn't know what to do, how to make it count, or just how to come out and tell her what he really wanted to say, that he wanted to find a way that they could be together.

"Knock-knock," the door swung open as Angel walked into the room, and flopped down on the bed next to him. He glared at her slightly. "Why is it that whenever you hear me thinking about anything important, you always think it concerns you?"

"Because it does," she answered, like it was the most natural thing in the world. "Fang, I don't understand you. Why don't you just ask her already? Do you really think that Max would give you up if you did?"

I don't know," he answered truthfully. "But I'm worried that it won't make a difference if I did. Even if when I turn eighteen, I take Max and get out of here, what am I supposed to do? Where am I supposed to go? I don't have a plan."

"Life doesn't come with a plan, Fang," she said tiredly. "You didn't plan for your girlfriend to have wings. Heck, you didn't even plan for _you _to have wings. But it throws you curve balls now and again, and you can't dodge them forever."

"What are you saying?" he asked, slightly irritated.

"Face up to your problems once in a while!" she practically shouted, and covered her mouth with both hands. "God, Fang, I'm so sorry," she looked away, trying not to notice his shocked expression.

"I'm sick of hearing how you'll never change anything," she looked down. "If you really want to change things, then just do it! You can't just sit and wish for something! If you want things to change, you have to make them change!"

"You're right," he said quietly, and stood up. "I'll make them change. Right now." And he headed for the window.

"What are you doing?" she called after him.

"I'm going to Max's!" he pulled the window open and jumped out.

"What about covering for Nudge?" she asked, exasperated. "You take care of it!" he shouted, and then he was gone. She shook her head, smiling slightly. Fang could always act like an adult. But at least for a while, it would be impossible for him to grow up.

In reality, he didn't have any idea what the real world was like. She chuckled. But that was alright, wasn't it? Max would show him, even if they didn't have much time left together.

* * *

Gazzy stepped up to the house nervously, the large box in his hands weighing him down some as he rang the doorbell and waited anxiously. At the sound of the doorbell, the box yipped once, and he shook it. "Shut up!" he hissed. "You're supposed to be a secret!"

The door swung open seconds later, and he was glad that it was Angel and not someone else. She looked around nervously, making sure her mother was nowhere in sight, and yanked him through the door.

He was dragged along, up the stairs. The box shuffled nervously, and whined slightly. Angel didn't have time to be curious about what was inside. She was preoccupied with maintaining the illusion that Nudge _and _Fang were inside the house.

"Um, where are we going?" he asked, slightly confused. They usually hid in the closets and spied on the maids, or went to their secret passage under the kitchen sink, or even to her room. But they were going the wrong way. By now, he knew the house like the back of his hand.

"Nudge and Fang are gone, so I have to cover for them," she rolled her eyes and pulled him into Nudge's room. He'd been there once or twice before –mainly to spy on Nudge- and hated it. It was just too pink.

"Oh," he sighed, and set the box gingerly on the bed, hoping that it would stay quiet. He crossed the room to inspect Nudge's beloved turtle, sure it had suffered a fair amount of abuse recently.

"So why are you here?" she asked distractedly as she walked into the bathroom and switched off the music and the shower, just giving up and deciding that she'd control any minds that happened to want to enter the room.

"Well," he fidgeted. He hoped that what Nudge had said about giving girls gifts was true. "I came over to give you something," he said truthfully. She nodded vaguely and locked the door, looking through the keyhole to make sure no one was coming.

"That would explain the giant box, then?" she said as she squinted by the door. He gulped and nodded. At last, she got up and sat on the bed next to him, and she was hit by all of his thoughts. She bit back a smile, realizing what was in the box.

"Can I open it?" she asked shyly, and he nodded. She laughed greedily and lifted the lid. The small black Scottie dog inside the box blinked at her for all of two seconds before barking and jumping into her arms.

Gazzy grinned sheepishly as she burst into a fit of giggles and the dog jumped on her, licking her face. She smiled and pushed off, and noticed what was around its neck. A necklace of some kind. She lifted it off and inspected it curiously.

Her name was printed on the front. The pendant was heart-shaped, and silver. When she turned it over, she burst out laughing as she read the inscription. _Did it hurt when you fell from heaven? _

Gazzy scratched his head guiltily as she set it down. "Thanks," she whispered, and kissed his cheek. "It means a lot." The Scottie dog coughed indignantly, feeling quite ignored. She gave it an odd look, sure that she was hearing things. She had to be.

She put it out of her mind as Gazzy put the necklace around her neck. He smiled. Nudge had been right. Gifts…always turned out to be worth it.

* * *

Nudge looked around her as they entered the restaurant. "What is this place?" she wondered aloud. Granted, something smelled amazing. But the place was crowded, the booths all had holes in them, the people were revolting, and to make things perfect, a baby was crying somewhere.

"Pizza Hut," Iggy replied, and stepped up to the counter, ordering something that she couldn't quite make out over the noise. She huddled close to him, slightly afraid that someone would walk though the door and kill her. This was all so strange.

They received their order soon enough, and made their way to one of the booths. At one point, she was hit by a wadded-up napkin thrown by a fifth-grader, and when she sat down, she was glaring. Iggy remained oblivious.

And still, she couldn't help but enjoy herself. This was where she wanted to be. In a place like this, with people like this, normal like this. That was all she had ever wanted.

Iggy handed her a plate and a slice of pizza, and she eyed it curiously. He wasted no time in devouring his as she poked hers with a fork curiously. He seemed to sense that she was uncomfortable. "You eat it with your hands," he instructed.

She picked it up timidly and bit her lip, not sure whether to try it or run away screaming. She knew that she could still get out of there. But she mustered up the last of her courage, and took a bite out of it, waiting for death to close in on her.

Instead, her eyes widened, and she stared at the triangle of food in her hands. "This is amazing!" she almost shouted, and were it not for all the people in the restaurant, she was sure everyone around her would have heard. Iggy chuckled.

She proceeded to finish the slice of pizza in less than three seconds. Iggy smirked. "So you like it, huh? I knew it," he waved a hand, taking all the credit. She didn't mind as she grabbed another slice of pizza. "Keep talking, blind boy. You won't know if I'm here or not," she retorted, and she was silent.

"Yeah, right. Like you'd just _leave_," he chuckled. No answer. "Come on, Nudge. You can't just play with me like that." No answer. "Nudge? You're still there, right?" he asked, starting to sound paranoid. Again, no answer.

"I know you're there," he scoffed. No answer. "Fine, be that way," he said uncertainly, only hoping that she really was just playing tricks on him. She bit her lip to keep from laughing.

It was times like this that she had missed out on for her entire life. But it was also times like this that she could get back.

* * *

Jeb was reading a newspaper and drinking a cup of coffee when he heard a knock at the door. He dropped the paper and got off the couch as he looked out the window to see who it was. His eyes narrowed. _Oh, great. _

"Hello, Fang," Jeb sighed as he opened the door. The boy in front of him looked at him expectantly. "Is Max here?" Fang asked cautiously. He didn't know why, but something about Jeb bothered him. Or creeped him out, more or less.

"No, she went to the grocery store," Jeb answered. "Oh," Fang nodded and turned around to leave. "Wait, Fang," Jeb said suddenly, and Fang turned back around, his creeped-out feeling growing stronger by the minute. "What?" he asked warily.

"Come inside," Jeb ordered. "We need to talk about some things." Fang hung his head. He'd seen this in movies. This was either the part where Jeb murdered him and dragged him to the basement, or gave him the strict parent talk.

Nevertheless, he walked inside, and sat down on the couch, crossing his arms over his chest. Jeb sat on the chair across from him. "So," Fang said evenly. "So," Jeb said just as evenly. Fang twiddled his thumbs.

"Fang, how serious are you about seeing my daughter?" Jeb asked suddenly. Fang shrank back uncomfortably. "W-W-Why do you ask?" he stammered. Did Jeb have mind-reading powers just like Angel?

Jeb sighed. "Fang, for the last few weeks, you know Max has been worried about her school starting, and how things are going to work. She's been very upset, and I don't like seeing her that way. She cares about you a lot."

"I care about her, too," Fang said slowly. "What's your point?"

"I don't want to see her so worried and out of sorts if it's for nothing," Jeb almost growled. "I don't want her to come home every day so happy, and then worry so much about you, if you're not going to be around for very much longer."

Fang was silent.

Jeb glared. "I'm making myself very clear, Fang. If you don't care about her as much as you possibly can, if you don't l-love my daughter, then I'm asking you to get the hell out of here."

Fang looked him straight in the eye. "Thanks for your concern, sir. But I don't plan on leaving her anytime soon. Put simply, I'd rather die. No, I don't know what I'm going to do yet, and frankly, I'm only seventeen. But I don't plan on just leaving when her school starts."

"So you do love her?" Jeb asked incredulously.

"Sir, I'd walk on blindfolded on broken glass _on my tongue _for her," Fang answered solemnly. Jeb fought back a grin. "If you hurt her, I'll shoot you," he warned. Fang shrugged. "I've gotten the same threat from Iggy and Gazzy, sir. If I ever get that crazy, I'll be prepared."

Jeb nodded as Fang walked to the door. And strangely, he wasn't worried. He knew his daughter was in good hands.

* * *

An hour later, Iggy was walking with Nudge down by the river that ran through the middle of town. They were on the outskirts now, away from all the traffic and people. And walking hand in hand, Iggy was happy. So was she.

It was silent, and she knew that he was thinking. She didn't mind. She was thinking about some things herself. For once, she didn't want to be anyone else. She was happy, right then and there.

"I'm not going to college," he said as they continued to walk. She could swear she felt her jaw hit the sidewalk. "But it's your dream!" she protested. "That's why Max is working for us in the first place! What are you going to do, work in that crappy gas station for the rest of your life?"

"Nudge-" he began, but she interrupted him. "Iggy, I can't let you go through with something like that! Don't you want to get out of poverty and do something important? You used to! What's wrong?"

"It's really not that-" he started, but she cut him off again. "Is this because of me? I mean, I don't want you to leave for college, but if you want to, I'm not going to hold you back! I want you to be happy!"

"Nudge, what are you-"

"No!" she protested. "You have to go to college! Max has the money for you by now? Why are you just giving up like that?"

"Nudge!" he shouted, and grabbed her shoulders. She was actually on the verge of tears. He leaned down and kissed her cheek tenderly. "I'm not going to college because I met you."

"What?" she exploded. "So this _is _all my fault! Well, guess what, mister? You're going to college! I'm not going to be responsible for this decision of yours! If you want to go, then go!"

He calmed her before continuing. "Nudge, it's not that," he sighed. "Because I met you, I…I felt happy. And I know now that I don't need to go to college and make a boatload of money when I'm older to feel that way."

She looked up at him with watery eyes. "If I can just find a normal job, with enough money to support me and the person I want to be with," he stammered, looking anywhere but at her, "then I can be happy!"

"I see," she looked away, the thought of Iggy with anyone but her making her feel sick inside.

"Nudge," he began, sweating buckets. "If I make that dream come true…that is, if I can be with anyone and be happy…then I want it to be you."

And for a moment, time was still as she processed it. What had he just said? Was it a promise? A proposal? Had Iggy just told her that he wanted to be with her, and only her? She wanted to believe it was true. But she was afraid.

"Iggy, I'm...that is, I love…I like…but I'm only sixteen!" she shouted, and shook her head. She looked up at him. "I'm sorry, but I'm still…just figuring love out."

She looked at the ground. "Where is the line between like and love?" she asked. "I don't really know. But I have a lot to figure out, and things that I want to do! Things that I want to see! And I still have to grow up. I still have to live."

She sighed. "I don't know what I want yet. I know that I…that you mean a lot to me. But I don't know where we stand, and we've never even had a real first kiss, and I'm so confused!"

He scooped her into his arms then, and her eyes went wide as his lips came crashing down on hers, and she just didn't care anymore. She went with it, because it was a heat-of-the-moment kind of thing. And maybe she did love him.

When he pulled away, he was smiling softly. "I know. And I know you can't make a decision yet. But I'll promise you one thing," she blushed as he leaned down so that he was level with her ear.

"I'll definitely make you fall in love with me."

And he pulled away, taking her hand. She followed him down the sidewalk, not really sure what had just happened. But for the moment, she decided that it was alright not to be sure.

She'd figure it out one day.

* * *

**Yes, yes, I know that I updated this late, but my dad's laptop broke and the computer I'm using is being a bitch. At least it's still on the same day -yay for the schedule! 8D- Next week I'm probably going to update a little early/late, as I'm going on vacation next Saturday.**

**I officially HATE writing fluff, by the way. I'm not a fluffy person. I'm not all smiley faces and rainbows. I'd much rather write angstangsangst. So the Gazzy/Angel in this chapter literally killed me. I am now dead. I SO can't wait until next chapter, when you get tears and angst and all that crap that you love. ^^ **

**I officially LOVE all of you who have been reviewing every single crapload of a chapter. ^^ You're awesomer than the Swiss Miss hot chocolate with the little dehydrated marshmallows in it. (Fo shizzle, that's a whole lotta awesome.) Peace, **

**~Rachel**


	19. Chapter 18

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 18 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted October 1st, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,991 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 15 | Angel - 13 / The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them? **

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to Jame's Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money for writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

* * *

"I'm back!" Max shouted as she opened the front door. Three heads popped up around the room as she unloaded her things and plopped down on the couch. Studying their blank faces, she huffed, slightly put out. "I got our school schedules."

Gazzy's face brightened, and he snatched the piece of paper out of her hands. Iggy shrugged closed his eyes, going back to sleep. "Awesome, I've got all the easy classes first semester!" he pumped his fist in the air. "Geez. Art, home economics, P.E., shop and computer apps. I'll have, like, no homework at all!"

"Aw, that's right!" she beamed. "You're starting high school!" Before he could register the thought, she'd wrapped her arms around his neck in a death grip. "Little Gazzy is all grown up!" she wailed melodramatically.

"Get _off_, Max!" he shoved her away and grabbed her own schedule. "Dude, you have all the hard shit," he mused. "What's this? AP English, Biology II, Geometry, Digital Art and Design and…and…_choir_?" he burst out laughing.

"Shut up," she pushed him. "I'm going to be up to my ears in homework," she groaned. "But I already did all the easy classes early on, so I need the credits now. And besides, you're going to have all the hard classes next semester. So live with that, O Great Smart One."

"Hey, I like to live in the moment," he shrugged. "_You_, on the other hand, have to live in the moment with all the hard classes. Who's laughing now, Max?" he cackled, and walked away, cackling all the way down the hall. They could still hear his laughter when the door closed behind him.

"Ah, you children and your crazy back-to-school paranoia," Iggy sighed happily, his eyes still closed. Max rolled her eyes and poked him in the side. "What?" he asked, annoyed.

"Why aren't you going to school too, mister?" she asked. "After all, that's the whole reason I worked my ass off to earn all that money. We have enough money to get you through the first year, at least. So why don't you go? I thought it was your dream."

Iggy shrugged. "I don't need to go to college anymore," he replied simply. She blinked.

"What? Of course you need to go to college!" she almost shouted. "You have to if you want to get a job, and make a living, and get a wife and kids one day! And let me tell you, Iggy, you're not living on my couch when you're forty-five!"

"I don't need to go to college to do all those things," he said calmly.

"What brought this on?" she asked curiously. "Iggy, I'm worried about you! Is it because you don't want to leave us here? Because you know, you can always come back and visit us, even Nudge," she bit her lip.

"Max, I just don't have to. And I don't have to tell you why. So just drop it," he felt a flicker of irritation toward his little sister. She gulped, and then she saw it. His reasons.

He was happy. He was happy right where he was. His life wasn't perfect, but to him, it was better than it had ever been. He didn't need to go to college to be happy. He could make a life for himself without going to college. And he also knew that life was better now that they finally had more money, and it was pointless to waste it if it wasn't going to make him happy.

"Anyway," he looked up at her, and his face had softened, but it was still serious. "Max, how long is your average school day?"

She shrugged. "About eight hours. Why?"

"Did you plan on continuing to work at Fang's this year?"

"Well, yeah," she answered thoughtfully. "I figured that I'd just get there early in the mornings, spend a few hours there, then go to school, hurry back to Fang's house, and then get home a little later."

Jeb sat up in his chair. "Max," he had a look of disbelief on his face. "Don't you realize that when you're going to school, you're going to be overworking yourself as it is? Anything more…any more stress you have to put on yourself…that would be overkill."

Max seemed genuinely surprised. "What are you saying?" she asked. "That I shouldn't work at Fang's?" Traitor tears welled in her eyes, and she blinked them back in a rush. "Dad, I can't just…I can't just _not _be around Fang."

"I didn't say that," he shook his head. "But I know the situation, both Iggy and Gazzy have told me." She cast Iggy a reproachful glare. "My point is that you can't build a life for yourself that involves Fang sneaking out to come see you, and try to keep the relationship alive that way, it won't work."

"And you can't overwork yourself," Iggy piped up. She turned to face him, dread sinking into her expression. "You might be able to live with working that way for a few weeks. But the stress of it would eat you alive sooner or later. Do you think we want to see you like that?"

Max closed her eyes. "Fang isn't 'stress'," she said, suddenly exhausted. "He's my…my boyfriend, and whether you like it or not, I think I might be in love with him." Her fists clenched. "But what other choice do I have left? What do you want me to do! This is happening, and I don't want to lose him!"

Before she knew it, tears were streaming down her face. Jeb looked at the floor, trying to ignore the fact that it was all Fang's fault for stealing his daughter's heart away. He _wanted _Max to forget Fang. He wanted her to be happy and forget. But he didn't know if she would.

"Max, even on the off-chance that you could work that hard, have you ever thought of the fact that they might not _want _you to?" Jeb asked, and Max looked up in surprise. "My point is," Jeb continued, "that they'll have no reason to hire you. Fang certainly can't tell them, and they won't need a schoolgirl who can only work part time. Whether you like it or not…you'll need to let go."

"I know," she chewed on her nails, and Iggy pulled her closer until she was sniffling into his chest. "I know." Jeb's heart clenched, and Iggy sat there helplessly as she sank into her realization. Autumn really would be the end of Fang, and she couldn't do anything about it.

Jeb stood up. "I'll leave you alone to think," he said quietly. "But remember that school is only a few days away. You have until then to make a decision." He left her with Iggy, but at that moment, she'd never felt so alone.

She needed the Voice to tell her what to do. She needed it to guide her this time.

But when she heard nothing, no thought of any kind, she gave up.

* * *

Hours later, the sky was pitch black, and so was the rest of the house. The boards creaked occasionally, and Gazzy tossed and turned in his light sleep. Iggy remained awake, just not able to do it. Because he knew nothing about his life was wrong. Nothing was changing for him. And Max's world was crashing down around her.

"Gazzy," he whispered, shaking the bunk beds slightly. "Gazzer, are you awake?" He felt the younger boy stir down on the bottom bunk, and crawled down the ladder to find his brother yawning and looking at the alarm clock, which read one o'clock in the morning.

"Iggy?" he asked sleepily. "What time is it?" he asked sleepily.

"Never mind that," Iggy waved it off. "Gazzy, Max is really upset, and I'm afraid that she won't even consider the decision, even though it's killing her. Knowing Max, she'll probably work herself into the ground and kill herself before she gives Fang up."

"What?" Gazzy sat up. "Do you want Max to break up with Fang?" he asked. He wasn't exactly the 'brightest crayon in the bag", as Max had pointed out several times, but he knew that Max hadn't been truly happy until meeting Fang.

"I don't know," Iggy sighed. "But I know that we have to talk to her, before she has a chance to have some sappy dream about Fang and then makes up her mind based on a fairy tale!" Gazzy looked at the ground. Iggy was right, even if he didn't want to admit it. He didn't want Max to go back to being the unhappy way that she was.

"Fine," he said reluctantly, and they got up, walking to the door. Gazzy followed Iggy down the hall, down the stairs, and into Max's room. They cracked the door open silently, and peered inside to see Max curled up in a ball on her bed with a bag of chocolate-chip cookies sitting next to her and a box of tissues in her hand.

She looked over to the door and noticed them. "Oh, hey guys," she sniffled, not even mustering up the will to smile. Gazzy rubbed his sleepy eyelids and walked inside. Iggy followed suit. Once they were seated on her bed and watching her shove cookie after cookie into her mouth, Gazzy broke the silence.

"So you're still upset about Fang?" he asked timidly.

She rolled her eyes slightly. "No, Gazzy. I'm upset because the Jonas Brothers are having a concert next month and I couldn't get any last-minute tickets."

He sighed. "Okay, granted, that was kind of an easy question." She didn't answer, shoveling more cookies into her mouth.

"What should I do?" she whispered suddenly, so quiet that Iggy wasn't sure he heard it. But then she said it again. "What should I do?" her lower lip was trembling. "I know I can't live like that. But I don't want to have to give him up. He's everything to me. He's everything that I want to have after high school."

Iggy put his hand over hers. "I know. But you have to remember that you're only seventeen, and you're too young to be-"

"Don't say I'm too young!" Max interrupted. "I hate that. I hate it when people say that." She looked straight at him. "Are you aware that right now, in India, there are twelve and eleven year old girls getting married so as not to be a burden on their families? Do you know that there are starving babies in Africa that have to deal with more hardship than most adults here? Did you ever think that there were children that escaped from the Titanic that had to watch and hear people dying? Tell _them _they're not old enough, Iggy."

"Know-it-all," Gazzy muttered, and Iggy bit back a chuckle. "Alright, wrong choice of words. Max, I'm not saying you're too young. I'm saying that you're too in love." She looked up in surprise. "No matter how much in love with him you are, be realistic. Don't let love cloud your decision."

She looked down, and they waited for what felt like forever before she finally spoke. "You're right," she chuckled humorlessly, hollowly. She felt dead inside. "I have to do this. And I don't know what will happen. I just have to hope that he won't forget me."

"So you're going to quit the job?" Gazzy asked, and she nodded. Pushing the cookies and the tissues off of her, she got up and walked to one of the boxes. After much searching, she found what she was looking for, an old notepad.

"I'll write a note," she sighed. "I'll give it to his mother. But I can't…I can't talk to him. At least, not now." A lump rose in her throat. "I'll give it a week, or two. And I'll see where I am by that time. What I'll want. I'll give him an answer then."

They left then, after many reassurances that they would be there for her, or that they would help her in any way she could. And after they were gone, a single tear rolled down her cheek. This time, she wouldn't have anyone to lean on. She was truly and completely alone.

* * *

The next day, Max's heart was heavy as she walked up the front steps to the house, as she had done so many times. It was too early in the morning for Fang to be awake, and she knew that, but his mother was always up and about by about eight-thirty nowadays. She felt horribly like she was sneaking around, and she was. But she just couldn't face him.

As she walked in the doorway, she realized that this would be the last time she was in this house, possibly forever. She couldn't control it, but it made her want to cry all the same as she walked into Anne's office.

Anne Walker looked up from her laptop and gave a prim smile. "Good morning, Max," she said crisply. "I see you aren't in uniform. Is something wrong?" Max sighed and held up a finger as she rummaged in her bag for the envelope. She finally found it, and placed it on her desk.

She fidgeted as she wanted for Anne to open it. When she finally did, and her hawklike eyes scanned through it, a look of disbelief passed over her face. "Max, you're resuming?" she asked, and Max nodded. "I…my school…I wouldn't have time…"

Before she knew it, Anne had crossed the room and enveloped her in a hug. Max held in her tears and refused to cry on Anne's shoulder. "I understand," Anne said when she pulled away. "And I hope you know that I'm not the bitch that they all say that I am."

Max looked up in surprise. To be honest, she wasn't sure that Anne knew anything about it, but she slapped on a surprised look nevertheless. "They think that I don't know what I'm doing, my own son and daughters included," she sighed. "But I just care about them so much. And if anything happened to them, I'd be devastated."

She smiled. "Just remember that I'm a mom, too. And it was nice having you work here, Max." Max sighed. _You have no idea just how nice. _And she managed a small smile before scurrying from the room.

On her way back to Iggy's car, she saw Angel and Nudge in the garden. They cast her a knowing smile, an 'I-know-you'll-make-the-right-decision' smile. But she wasn't sure that she should. "Thank you," she managed to say, before pulling the both of them into a tight hug.

She was going to miss them, too. Her best friends.

* * *

When Fang walked down the stairs that day, it was exceptionally quiet for being around lunchtime. Angel, Nudge and Total (as she'd named the new dog) were nowhere to be found, and many of the servants had clustered together in groups, leaning together and whispering whenever he appeared. He knew what they were doing. He just didn't know why.

He did notice that he usually saw Max around this time, and today, she didn't seem to be anywhere. He knew because he'd already searched for her. But he didn't think much of it. After all, everyone had sick days. Maybe she'd come down with something.

"She's not here," he heard a voice behind him, and whirled around to see one of the maids standing behind him. Julie, if he remembered her name correctly. And he usually did. "Who's not here?" he asked nonchalantly.

"Don't act like you don't know," she rolled her eyes. "I'm not stupid. You and Max are together. I saw you two sneak off at lunch one day." In seconds, he'd grabbed her by the arm and dragged her out of sight. "If you tell anyone about this," he hissed, "I'll have you fired in the blink of an eye."

She wrenched away from him, surprisingly. And then she slapped him across the face. He stared at her, awestruck. "Oh, please," she huffed, but there was a laughter in her eyes. "You can't just push me around, pretty boy. You're just another human, and I am, too! I'm not afraid of you!" He touched his cheek, wincing slightly.

"Besides, it's not like I was going to tell anyone," Julie shrugged. "Max was one of my best friends. I used to talk to her a lot, because before she got with you, we were on the same lunch break, so we'd eat together. And even after you got together, I still talked to her every day."

She laughed silently. "Don't you get it? I'm keeping your dirty little secret, so don't get me fired now, pretty boy," she ordered. "Plus, you two are perfect for each other," she laughed. "And I just want her to be happy. So make her happy, you got it?"

He nodded. "Got it." She grinned, and flounced out. _What the hell just happened? _

She was a strange one, all right.

He sighed. _Make her happy, huh? _Little did he know that he just might not get the chance.

* * *

After that, Max tried as hard as she possibly could to forget about Fang, that house, and the life she had made there. She couldn't say she succeeded. Every day that she was away from him got harder to live with, and as the days grew longer, she couldn't help but wonder what Fang was doing.

Her mind would stray to him at the most unexpected of times. If she was in her room, and getting ready for bed, she would look at it and remember the night Fang held her in his arms. She had loved having his arms around her and feeling so vulnerable, and yet, so safe.

When she was making sandwiches for Iggy and Gazzy, her mind would travel to that time in the attic of his house, with the picnic blanket and the sandwiches that had seemed like such a big step to him at the time. She remembered seeing his smiling face. He had been proud. Proud of making a sandwich. She would giggle, and instantly regret it.

One day, she was walking past her new school, and saw a notice sticking to the door. The first day of school would be pushed back two weeks due to some construction they were doing on the new wing. All she could think about was how she could have had two extra weeks with Fang as she ran home and cried.

She would wake up in the middle of the night, screaming for no reason at all. It was always the same dream – the dream of never seeing Fang again, and then learning that he had died. Every night, Iggy would run down to her room to comfort her, to hold her until her tears stopped flowing and she fell back to sleep.

The days wore on, and every hour fell like a century. What must Fang have been thinking? Had he missed her? Had he forgotten her? She just didn't know. And the dreams were getting worse, more vivid. Her family tried to talk to her. Julie had called her. And the Voice still wasn't answering her thoughts.

On one particular night, she woke up screaming from a new dream, an excruciatingly real one. Her sobs echoed throughout the house, and she waited for Iggy to come. But he didn't. He never showed up. And she began to realize that he'd given up on her.

Up in his room, Iggy was tortured. But he told himself that it was better this way, if she got over it. So he plugged his ears and looked away as his own tears pooled in his eyes. Without Fang…their world was falling apart.

* * *

A week and a half went by, and Fang was beginning to worry. What had happened to Max, and why wasn't anyone telling him? He hadn't been able to get anything out of Nudge, or even Angel, and he didn't know what to do. Nothing made sense without her there, and it scared him.

As he walked around the corner, he could hear his mother talking. Lurking just behind the door, he could hear her voice. "I've made a list of the new employees," Anne was saying. "We always need more people in the fall, and one more because of Max's resignation."

Fang was sure that he felt his jaw hit the floor. _Resignation? Max isn't working here anymore? _A thousand emotions filled him at light speed. But the biggest one was the wonder. Why had she left? And why hadn't she told him? Was she even planning on ever seeing him again.

Without a second thought, he whirled around and raced out the front door. He had to find her again, he was sure. About what he'd do when he got there, he was uncertain. But he had to get her back. He couldn't let her leave.

_So make her happy, you got it?_

_Yeah, I get it. Now more than ever._

* * *

Fang raced through the city streets, not caring as he knocked over newspaper stands, hot dog carts and even a few people. He didn't care that he looked like an idiot flailing his arms and running at what felt like the speed of light but was really slower than a ten-year-old riding a bike. He just needed to find Max.

_I won't be too late. I can't be too late. _Too late for what, exactly? That was just it. He didn't know why he hadn't heard from Max. He didn't know if she'd moved and not been able to tell him, or if she didn't love him anymore. He gritted his teeth and kept running. It couldn't be.

And there, at the end of the street, was Max. She was walking out of a store with a bag in her hand, completely oblivious to him. That was when he realized that he had switched over to his supernatural bird-kid strength, running way too fast.

Before he could skid to a stop, he ran straight into her, and knocked her to the ground, and everything was still as Max realized just who had fallen on her, and the fury on her face was replaced with fear. "F-F-Fa-Fang," she stammered, tears gathering in her eyes.

"Thank God," he whispered, well aware that they were in the middle of the sidewalk. And it all poured out in a rush. "Max, where were you? Why did you leave and not tell me? Why did you quit working for my mom? Why didn't you even say goodbye?" he was shaking, and he couldn't stop.

She was crying. "Fang, I…I have to leave!" she looked away. "This summer…it was fun. But we both knew that it wasn't going to last forever, and it wasn't going anywhere fast. I…thought I loved you, but I'm still just a kid, and you'll probably get over me. So forget me!"

"I can't forget you," he said honestly. "For God's sake, Max, I told you that I loved you, and you said the same thing about me! Were you lying? And if you weren't, then why do you have to leave now?" She bit her lip.

"Fang, I have school. I have responsibilities, and I have a life to live. I'm only seventeen, and I can't deal with this right now." She looked around her, and saw the situation – him lying on top of her on the sidewalk with over a hundred people staring at them.

He bit his lip. "Then I only have one thing to ask you," he replied.

A tear slid down her cheek. She didn't want to end it, but she had to. _What's your question, Fang? 'Can we still be friends'? 'Will you tell anyone that I have wings'? 'Should I remove you from my friends list on Facebook'? _

She wished she'd never met him. She wished that she'd never loved him. And maybe she wouldn't feel this way now. He took a deep breath.

"Max, will you marry me?"

* * *

**Okay, first of all, CLIFFY! *cue maniacal laughter* xD I've had this stored up for some time. The smart ones figured it out. (Oh, and I dropped, what, a thousand clues? :/) Btw, h****ow cool is it that when I was writing the bit about Fang listening in on his mom's conversation, "Fly On the Wall" came on my iPod? 8D**

**Since I'm updating from my aunt and uncle's house (omgomg they live on a ranch but their house is effing AWESOME) I thought I'd give you this a little bit early. Screw the schedule! Who loves me? *raises hand* xD Actually, you're all very lucky. If you've been following all these crummy A/N's, you know I have bad teeth, so yesterday, I got more metal in my mouth AGAIN, and now I feel lik crap. In short, I can't chew anything. So I'm half-starved and having hallucinations of the Jonas Brothers. WTF THIS IS NOT GOOD. **

**Reviews would be greatly appreciated (as well as a passing grade in Physical Education, Mr. Schmidt? :D)! **

**~Rachel**


	20. Chapter 19

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 19 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted October 11th, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3671 words

Max, Fang - 17 | Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 15 | Angel - 13 | Dylan - 17 | Lissa - 17 | Tess - 17 / The original age ranges have been changed.

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come betwen them?**

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to James Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money writing this story, I simply write for reviews. _

_"Max, will you marry me?"_

* * *

Max blinked up at him, and in that instant, every plan, every dream, every perception of her life as she knew it. In that instant, she saw Fang in a suit at the end of the aisle. She saw him holding a little girl with blonde curls and dark eyes. And she saw him getting older, his wings gray at the tips.

It frightened her and excited her at the same time. Hadn't she been the one to think of marrying Fang for herself, before knowing if they would even last the summer? Knowing each other for three months was nothing, because it felt like a lifetime.

There she was, battling with herself on the pavement on a crowded street, with Fang sitting above her, eyes wide, not entirely believing what he himself had just asked. Because in that instant, his future had changed, too.

He saw it then, as clear as day, his life with Max. They wouldn't be rich, of course, quite the opposite. He wouldn't see Angel and Nudge as he used to. But then he saw Max, and their life together, and he knew that nothing else mattered.

"Max?" he asked quietly, and she only shuddered in response. Yes, she wanted to say. She wanted to say it a thousand times and once more. But she also knew that the odds had it ending badly for them, and wondered if it was worth the risk.

For one thing, his mother was sure to find out about it, and what would they do then? Fang would be homeless, and they were only seventeen. "I…I…" Max was speechless.

At that moment, the Voice stepped in. _What to do, what to do, _it said in that snide voice she'd grown to loathe and love at the same time. Leave me alone, she prayed. Just leave me the hell alone. I've got enough on my plate.

_Unfortunately, you don't have enough time to think about such things, _the Voice said coldly, and she couldn't help but wonder what it was talking about this time. The Voice didn't reply, and disappeared as quickly as it had come.

"Max," Fang said again, and she snapped out of it. Looking up to see where she was, she looked into his eyes, and knew that she could never be with him. She didn't belong in his life. She didn't belong in his heart. And that was fine, just fine.

So she did the only thing she could do, something that had been her instinct to do ever since she met him. "I can't," she looked anywhere but at him, and jumped up. Then she ran. She ran as fast as she could, and when she felt like she couldn't run anymore, she only ran faster, tears stinging her eyes. _That was for the best, _she heard the Voice in her ear.

"Shut up!" she screamed at it as she ran into the forest behind town. _It wasn't for the best! I lost him. He wanted to be with me, and I lost him, and you're only making it worse!_ And she crashed to the ground, unable to run any longer.

At the foot of a large tree, she remained on the ground, because she just didn't have the will to get up. Tears streamed down her face, because she knew that this was it. It was finally over, after all this time.

_You didn't belong in his world. You never did. _She realized that it wasn't the Voice this time. It was the sound of her own thoughts. She knew she didn't belong with him. They were just too different, and she could never be part of his world.

It was underneath the tree that her heart broke as she realized that this wasn't a fairy tale, and that there just weren't story-book endings. Cinderella would have stayed home scrubbing the floors, and Snow White never would have woken up.

Looking around her, her last tear fell as she saw that he hadn't followed her.

* * *

Angel sat at the window of her room, staring out onto the front lawn blankly. Fang was very far away, granted, but he wasn't that far away. In her mind's eye, she could see and feel everything that Fang was feeling as he waited on that sidewalk for her answer.

She knew every thought in both of their heads. The main feeling coming from the scene of it was fear. Fear of rejection, fear of getting hurt, fear that their lives would change, and they would. If only they knew how much.

The second feeling was love. Angel could feel happiness in Max's heart, and she could sense just how completely important she was to Fang. But unfortunately, love just wasn't enough. Fear overpowered love, and rock beats scissors. Angel knew that fear wore on the human brain, enough to make a person go inside.

And she knew Max's decision before Max spoke it aloud. _I can't_ echoed through Angel's mind, as if Max had screamed it into the deepest canyon. She felt Fang's rejection, and Max's pained heart, and she wanted to escape. But all she could do was sit and feel every bit of it.

She didn't flinch as Max ran from the scene, because she'd seen worse things in her short life. She didn't cry as Fang slumped against a lamp post, defeated. Her heart didn't budge as both of theirs broke. She took a deep, shuddering breath and kept it in.

She sighed as Total plopped down her lap, and she stroked his black fur. She didn't know why, but he was always comforting somehow. "Stop worrying," he looked up at her, concerned. "Let's go outside. Let's play with the ball. Get your mind off things."

Total was worried. Angel had been acting strangely the entire day, just staring out the window and ignoring him.

For a moment, she didn't answer him as she heard Max's Voice speaking to her. She knew plenty of secrets, didn't she? Secrets about Max, about Fang, and about Total. And she knew she kept secrets better than anyone else she knew. But secrets were made to be hidden, she had discovered.

"Can we read magazines instead? I know you like them," Angel smiled down at him. "Okay," he barked, and trotted over to her bed. She gave the window one last, long look before putting it after her mind and walking after him.

* * *

Fang sat on the sidewalk, stunned, as he watched the girl he loved run away. But he wasn't surprised. Max wouldn't have said yes if he'd asked her a thousand times, of that he was sure. And it was better that way. _You're dangerous_, his subconscious told him. _It's better off this way, and she won't get hurt. _

The entire stretch of sidewalk was staring at him as he sat lamely in the middle of the walkway. Max was gone, and he was frozen to the spot. _It's not better, _he thought. _I lost her. _He shook his head. It couldn't be like this. It couldn't end this way, not after everything they'd been through together.

"That's rough, man," he heard a voice behind him as a teenage boy regarded him with pity. Fang shook his head and stood up, the whole situation feeling surreal. This hadn't just happened. He hadn't just asked Max to marry him. He hadn't just changed everything.

But he had, for better or worse, and for once, he couldn't turn away. The biggest mistake of his life, and he couldn't go back and make it so that it never happened. He flinched as he felt a hand on his arm, and turned around to see the same teenage boy behind him. "Leave her alone," the boy said. Fang growled. "Who the hell are you to tell me that?"

The boy shrugged. "Just some guy on the street, right? What the hell could I know?" he grinned. If only this Fang knew how much he did know. "Just listen to me when I say that it's better if you two aren't together. And remember, this conversation never happened."

And the boy walked away. Fang gaped a full two seconds before walking after him. "Hey," he shouted, and grabbed the boy's shoulder, pulling him around to face him. "What do you mean, 'this conversation never happened'?"

The boy grinned, and for once, Fang's blood ran cold. "What conversation?" he asked, and he was gone.

* * *

"Dylan," Dr. Gunther-Hagen smiled from his place at his desk as Dylan walked into the room. "You did fantastically," he complimented, and despite the nagging feeling that he was doing something horribly wrong, Dylan felt happy. Dr. Gunther-Hagen was proud of him. Didn't that matter, too?

"This is perfect," Dr. Gunther-Hagen said, sorting through papers on his desk as Dylan glanced around the room uncomfortably. "Once we separate Max from Fang, there will be nothing standing in between her and the School." He grinned. "And they're willing to pay an agreeable sum of money for her."

"This is illegal, isn't it?" Dylan asked worriedly. "You're planning to capture another human being and practically sell her. If you get caught, you'll go to jail," he pointed out. Dr. Gunther-Hagen let slip a chuckle that made Dylan's skin crawl.

"Oh, Dylan," Dr. Gunther-Hagen mused, "you have a lot to learn. Nothing worth doing is ever done legally, and more importantly, no one will ever know about this. If anyone was going to find out about the School, they would have by now."

"How are you going to hide the fact that she's gone missing?" Dylan hissed. "They'll find out, and I don't want to be a part of it!" Dr. Gunther-Hagen eyed him curiously.

"Dylan, have you forgotten that you're still my pet?" he asked, giving a prim smile. "As long as I have you here, you're forced to do what I say. Quite frankly, you don't have enough of the human emotion of free will to do anything about it." Dylan could have screamed.

"I could," he hissed, almost trying to convince himself. He was part human. He had to find a way to escape this. "I could if I knew I could be free. You aren't keeping me here. I could go to the police, and have you arrested, and never look at your face again."

"You won't," Dr. Gunther-Hagen replied almost instantaneously. "But just in case…what if I made this little game more interesting?" he asked in that slippery-smooth voice that Dylan had learned to distrust, even if Dr. Gunther-Hagen was the only parental figure he had.

"What do you mean?" Dylan asked warily, curious nevertheless. Dr. Gunther-Hagen's grin only widened. "Raise the stakes," Dr. Gunther-Hagen said simply. "I want my work done, and you want your freedom. So what if we made a little trade?" Dylan's heart leapt at the chance.

"Do you mean that if I did this for you…if I killed Maximum Ride…" Dylan trailed off, hardly allowing himself to hope, but already, a perfect human life flashing before his eyes. Being adopted by a family. Having friends. Living the life he'd been dreaming of. "If I did that, would you set me free?"

"If that is your wish," Dr. Gunther-Hagen replied simply, and Dylan couldn't help but take the bait. As much as he would have loved a normal life, not to kill any one person, not to deal with this, the only way to get that was to go through with this. "I'll do it," he replied.

"I had a feeling you would," Dr. Gunther-Hagen said, satisfied. "Now, please rest, and we'll resume your strength training. You don't have much time before all of this will come into play." Dylan nodded, only thinking of the fact that in just under two months, he'd be free.

_It's wrong_, the nagging part of his brain told him, but he ignored it, just like always. Everyone lied, everyone cheated, everyone stole, and some killed. The world was a cruel place, and he'd learned that the hard way. So if he had to kill Maximum Ride…he'd do what he had to.

And he _would _have to.

* * *

Fang was stunned. The boy that had just appeared had said just what he was thinking – that it would be better off if he and Max weren't together. Fang knew why. The School wasn't gone, and it never, ever gave up. Sooner or later, it would come back, and if it could find both of them in one place – it would never let them go.

Months ago, before he ever met Max, some particularly threatening letters had come to their house. To someone who didn't know of the School, it wouldn't have made any sense. But Fang knew better. He knew why his mother wouldn't even let him off the property, wouldn't let him see anyone.

There was always the threat that the School would come back for him. Anyone could be someone not to trust, and anything could happen. Angel had already been kidnapped by the school when she was only six years old. That had been a scare.

The School would always come back. Even if Max didn't know it, they were surely looking for her, too. And once they found her, there was no telling what could happen. If they were together, the School finding them was always a higher risk.

He sighed. But even if that was so, even if the School came for them, even if they never escaped, even if they were trapped forever, he knew he couldn't live without Max. She was completely different from him, like a breath of fresh air. She was so free, and happy, and strong, and he loved her.

She was arrogant, and sarcastic, and impossible, but he loved her with all his heart. She was his number one forever, someone he couldn't imagine himself living without, and he would be an idiot to let her go. So even if the School came for them, even if all hell broke loose, he just couldn't do it.

He took off running, and didn't look back. He ran like his life depended on it, to the forest behind town. It was completely silent as he crashed through trees and bushes, and he didn't care when he tripped over a rock and fell to the ground. Because there, just beyond the clearing, was Max, crying under one of the trees.

"Max," he regretted it as soon as he spoke the word. She looked up from her hands to see him, and it hit her like a slap in the face. He loved her, and he'd come back for her. But then she shook her head, and came back to reality. It just couldn't happen. "Fang," she replied steadily.

She flinched as she heard the voice speaking to her again. _Forget him,_ it told her.

It was with a heavy heart that she spoke again. "Leave, Fang. Just leave. Go away."

* * *

"Miss Lissa? Miss Lissa, are you in here?" Lissa didn't bother to look down from her ladder as one of the maids walked into the storage shed. "Lissa, what are you doing?" Lissa sighed. "Trying to get that red suitcase up there. Can you help me?"

"O-Of course, miss," she replied, and climbed up to help her. After a few moments of struggling, they managed to pull it free of the many other duffel bags. Lissa looked fondly at it once they were back down on the ground. "Pardon my asking, miss," the maid said shyly, "but why that particular suitcase?"

Lissa smiled. "This suitcase has been through a lot," she said vaguely, and towed it out of the shed and back toward the house, the maid following her the entire way. "Are you going on a trip, Miss Lissa?" she asked curiously.

Lissa looked back at her, frowning slightly. "Tess, I told you that you can call me Lissa. You've been our maid for two years." Tess smiled slightly and continued walking. "Yes, I am going on a trip, actually," Lissa replied.

"Ooh, to where?" Tess asked excitedly. "Florida? The Bahamas? Or maybe somewhere a little bit more exciting, like Europe?" Lissa shook her head. "No, it's nothing like that. This is more of a personal trip."

"A personal trip?" Tess scratched her head. Lissa sighed. "Don't tell anyone, alright? But I'm going to see Fang." Just saying his name made Lissa happier than she'd been all day. The one summer she'd spent with Fang had been the best of her life, even if she had been working as a maid.

"Not Fang!" Tessa said in a whisper, and Lissa nodded. "I know, I know. It's crazy! He lives halfway across the country, and I hardly ever get to see him, but he is…well…I still…" she was cut off as Tess covered her mouth.

"You still love him. I get it," she gave a small smile. "Just don't get hurt this time, Lissa." Lissa nodded. She knew that there was no telling where Fang was now, or who he was with. He could have moved on, despite his promise. But if she could help it, she'd make him fall in love with her again.

"Don't worry," she replied. "It's all going to be okay."

* * *

An eternity passed as Fang stared at Max and she stared back at him. "Leave? Go away?" his voice cracked. "Do you want me to leave? Do you want me to go away?" He was shaking. "Max, I just asked you to marry me. I chose you. What the hell is wrong?"

Max closed her eyes. The Voice was telling her not to. The Voice was telling her to forget him, but she didn't know that she could. She had grown so used to seeing Fang, being with Fang, hearing his voice, loving him. How could she just forget that? Life without him had been worse than the School.

"It won't work," her voice cracked. "We're just kids, and you have a whole future for yourself that I won't ruin just because of a stupid whim at age seventeen. Your mother will disown you, you'll lose your family, and you'll lose your chance at a career and a college education."

"Doesn't it matter that I love you, and I never want to have to give you up again?" he asked angrily.

She glared at him. "Unfortunately, it doesn't. Over half of all marriages end in divorce, and that risk is even higher for teenagers. I won't take the risk of messing our lives up so young just because you don't want to let go." There were tears in her eyes.

"Damn it, Fang, don't you get that I'm trying to forget this ever happened? I have my school, I have my future, and I'm still trying to figure out what the hell life's about before I screw it up!" her fists clenched. "I love you! Is that what you want to hear? I love you, I do! But it doesn't matter anymore!"

He crawled toward her, and she backed up against the tree. "It should always matter," he whispered, and cupped her face with the side of his hand. "I think…" he trailed off. _Damn, all this talking is hard, _he thought. "I think we met for a reason, because every good day is a day I spend with you. I think it was fate, or God, or what the hell, the apocalyptic voodoo monkey in the sky." She laughed in spite of herself.

"I think we have a shot at this," he whispered. "I think we could spend our lives together. I think we could have that life, with a house, and a car, and one of those stupid big dogs," he grinned. "I think we could have little winged kids, and I think I could love you until the day that I die."

She looked away, and tried not to picture it, because it hurt too much. It had never been right for things to go the way she wanted them to. She had learned that life was hard, and if it sounded too good to be true, it usually was. "I'm scared," she whispered. "Me too," he replied, and leaned in to kiss her.

His lips covered hers, and she felt herself give in. He leaned in closer until she was pressed against the tree trunk completely, her hands in his hair, and she wondered how she'd ever been able to say no in the first place. "Yes," she muttered, and he pulled away. "What?" he asked.

"Yes," she looked up at him. "Yes, I'll marry you. Yes, I'll spend my life with you. Yes, I'll have a house and a car and a dog and as many kids as you want, or none at all," she grinned. "I just want you. My whole life."

He almost smiled, but he didn't. "Are you sure?" he asked as he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. He felt her nod. "It won't be easy. And I don't really know how to tell my mother that I'm engaged," he grinned. "I don't even have a ring for you."

"I don't need one," she replied. "And I…I think you'll figure things out." They fell silent once again, and Fang couldn't help but wonder what he'd gotten himself into. In one day, he'd gone from being a teenager to a fiancé, and future husband. Was this how love went? He couldn't say.

"One more thing," he heard Max speak, and looked down at her expectantly. "You're the one telling my dad that you want to marry me," she ordered, and he froze. She chuckled darkly.

"You're lucky that I love you so damn much," he growled, and she smiled slightly. She didn't know if she was making the right decision, but they were about to find out. _I love you, too, _she thought, and she could only hope that it was enough.

* * *

**I'm so, so sorry that you all have had to wait over two weeks for me to update. I know I probably lost some readers, and that makes me sat, but my laptop couldn't get connection, so I couldn't post this. Thanks to anyone who's still reading. **

**I hate this chapter, and I don't know why. I find it crappy? I don't know. The next one will be better. **

**Congrats to those of you who saw this chapter coming ;D**

**~Rachel**


	21. Chapter 20

**Through the Eyes of a Servant | Chapter 20 | **by: Rachel / Chapter posted November 29, 2010.

AU | Max/Fang | PG / 3,717 words

Max, Fang - 17| Iggy - 19 | Nudge - 16 | Gazzy - 15 / Angel - 13

**When Max accepts a job as a maid in Fang's household, will it be love at first sight? Or will anything and everything come between them?**

_The idea for this story is my own, and no one else's. Everything else belongs to James Patterson -although I will be next in line for the throne when he retires xD-. I made no money writing this story, I simply write for reviews._

* * *

Jeb Bachelder sat on his living room couch, his brow creased in confusion, as the two teenagers in front of him waited anxiously for a response, any response. Jeb sighed inwardly, his mind a whirl of thoughts. Yes, he'd seen himself in this position before.

He'd been expecting something like this ever since Max had gotten her first boyfriend, three years ago. She'd been fourteen then, just a kid, just like she was now, waiting for him to either deny her of all her rights or give her the go-ahead, the blessing to finally start dating. And since then, he'd always been waiting for this day.

_We're engaged, _she had said. _We're in love, _she had said. And although what Jeb Bachelder had really been expecting to hear was _I'm pregnant, Daddy, _it didn't make it any easier to hear. After three months of knowing Fang, his daughter had up and decided to marry him. And it hurt. Max wasn't his little girl anymore. She never would be again, because those days were over.

And yet, they still both looked like kids. Fang, biting his lip and wringing his hands and fidgeting like mad. Max, her eyes wide, that _please Daddy please _look on her face, just like when she was fourteen years old. If that proved anything, it proved that they were only kids, that they couldn't possibly get married. Still, there they were.

His eyes, while thoughtful, traveled to the picture on the wall, the one of his wife and three children at the beach on that one afternoon all those years ago. _If you're old enough to want it, you're old enough to do it, _Valencia Martinez had said once before. And what Jeb had discovered, in all his years of being married, was that she was usually right.

"Dad?" Max asked cautiously, her voice barely more than a whisper. Fang had avoided making all eye contact and now appeared to be in an intense staring contest with the floor, and winning at that. Jeb's eyes left the picture on the wall and traveled back to his daughter's face. This time, she was seventeen again. All grown up.

He sighed again and rubbed his forehead. "Does Fang's mother know?" he asked simply. And he didn't need to hear the answer, because he could see it from the way Fang's eyes flashed, from the brief look of panic on Max's face, from the sick expression that the two of them shared. Jeb groaned.

"Okay, not exactly," Max looked down at the ground. Fang looked as if there was nothing he would have loved more than to die, even if it meant being cast into the deepest pits of hell. "But we were going to tell her right after this!" she protested. "Right, Fang?"

Fang looked guiltily away and said nothing. "Fang!" Max hissed, swatting him on the arm. He looked up at Jeb. "I mean, yes. Right after this," he lied lamely. Jeb's eyes narrowed, and Max sighed in defeat.

"I thought as much," Jeb said blandly. "You guys, let's say that by some miracle, Fang's mother did, in fact, say yes. Exactly when are you two planning to go through with this?" The look on their faces told him all he needed to know all over again. They had given it exactly zero minutes of thought.

Jeb glared at Fang sternly. "Fang, my daughter is in high school. You both are seventeen. Still minors. Still children. You can't get a decent job in the world if you're uneducated and married straight out of high school. I appreciate your enthusiasm, but can't you see the flaw in your plan?"

Max set her jaw, and Jeb sighed, because in that instant, he saw so much of her mother in her that it was scary. He saw the same defiance in Max that he'd seen in his dead wife so many times. Because in a lot of ways, they were one in a same. And if she truly felt this way, he was fighting a losing battle, and he knew it.

_Can't you see that this is what she wants? _He heard Valencia's voice in his head. _Don't you see that this is where her heart's at? You might not know what this boy has to offer her, but he's the one in her heart. He's the one she loves and wants to be with. Why can't you trust her? Why can't you? _

"Because she's my daughter!" his hands clenched into fists, and he didn't realize that he'd spoken the words aloud until he felt Max's hand on his own. She looked at him with soft, serious eyes.

"Damn it, Max," he sighed. "I wish I could let you grow up. I wish I could tell you to go ahead and marry him. I wish I didn't care." He looked away. "But I do! It's too soon! I'm afraid that something will go wrong, and you'll get your heart broken, and you'll come back to me, and ask me why I didn't stop you, and I'll wish that I did."

He looked up at her. "I know that it's what all dads say, but I watched you grow up. I held you when you were a baby, and I took you trick-or-treating every year on Halloween, and I held the handle of your bike and taught you how to ride it. I didn't let you fall back then, and I can't now!"

It was then that Fang spoke up. And when he did, the spark in his eyes startled Jeb. The determination caught him off guard. It was a look that told anyone around that he meant business, and that he was truly, truly serious.

"With all due respect, Mr. Bachelder," Fang said, his voice steady, "I love your daughter. You might have held the handles on that bike back then, but I'm taking over now. And I promise, with my own life, that I will never, ever let her fall."

"Fang-"

"Listen!" Fang interrupted, his voice hard. "These are the only words I have to say to you or anyone else that asks me. Just because I'm young doesn't mean I'm stupid, Mr. Bachelder. Max is the one that I want to spend the rest of my life with. I wouldn't say that if I wasn't serious."

He pulled Max closer to him protectively. "If we have to wait, we will. If we don't have much money, that's okay. Whatever the problem is, we'll find a way to make it work. I promise you that."

Jeb swallowed hard. Seeing Fang's arm around his daughter like that was hauntingly familiar, bringing back old memories, like being nineteen and telling Valencia's parents the same thing. Like seeing Iggy the day he was born. Like teaching Max how to ride that bike.

"I'm trusting you on this," he said at last, and tried not to notice how much Max's face lit up, because even if he was really letting her grow up now, it still hurt, just a little. Fang just nodded once. "I won't let you down," he replied.

And Jeb could only hope that it was enough.

* * *

That night, it seemed like there were a million stars in the sky. The road in front of the two of them was lit by four lamp posts, and the locusts were buzzing noisily. Apart from that, it was eerily silent as both of them made their way to the large house at the end of the block. Neither one of them spoke.

"So you're really going to tell her?" Max asked, looking up at him with wide eyes. "Tomorrow?"

"Yeah," he answered as they reached the wrought-iron fence that she had come to know so well. His stomach flipped just thinking about it. How was his mother going to react when he told her that he was going to marry a poor girl, no more than a 'commoner' in her eyes? Disown him? Scream at him yet again? He didn't know.

"Don't worry about it," she whispered, and leaned up to kiss him lightly on the cheek. Her shyness startled him. It seemed uncharacteristic for some reason. "Your mother can't keep you prisoner forever," she told him. "In a few more months, you'll be eighteen. And then it's you, me, a white dress and a couple of rings," she joked.

"I bet you'd look really good in a white dress," he grinned softly, and leaned down to capture her lips in a kiss, a more passionate one this time. Butterflies sprouted in her stomach as she stood on her toes, her arms weaving around his neck. Lightheaded, she feared that if he wasn't holding her up, she'd fall over.

"First day of school is tomorrow," he whispered in her ear. "You excited?"

She groaned, as he knew that she was. The last thing that she wanted to think about was that she had one more year of high school and then four more of college to look forward to. "You'll do great," he whispered, and she sighed, not wanting to think about it, just letting him hold her.

"Thanks," she mumbled, and they stayed like that for another two minutes before he let her go, kissed her softly on the forehead, and unfurled his wings, soaring like a whisper over the wrought iron fence and fading into the sky. She watched him fly away, and felt lonelier than than almost ever before.

With that, she turned away, stole one last glance up at the night sky, and walked back down the path towards home.

* * *

The next morning, she woke up to her alarm clock in the usual way, at six o'clock sharp. With a shudder and a long, painful sigh, she got up out of bed, grudgingly made it through the shower, put on one of her best outfits –which wasn't much– and tied her hair back into a low ponytail.

The Voice made no surprise appearance – which she was extremely glad of. Putting on a thin layer of makeup, having never been much of a person for the stuff, she took one last look at her room before climbing the stairs tiredly and slinking into the kitchen, where Iggy, Gazzy and Jeb were already up.

"There's my favorite sister!" Iggy grinned mischievously, eager for the chance to poke fun at Max for once. "There she goes, folks, ready for her first day of school, just like a big girl!" Gazzy snickered behind the counter as he received an annoyed slap in the face from a very disgruntled Max.

"I was going to give you some chocolate-chip pancakes, but I don't think I will," he stuck his tongue out her. Instantly, her eyes brightened, and he didn't have to have his eyesight to know that he had gotten her attention at 'chocolate'. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" she said immediately, and he grinned.

"Now, Max, I know that it's going to be a big day for you," he said as she ate her pancakes hungrily, "but just remember that for Gazzy, it's going to be about ten times worse. Just think. Yesterday, he was an eighth grader, on top of the school, and today, he'll be dunked in a toilet by one of those freakishly tall juniors." He grinned devilishly.

A look of panic passed over Gazzy's face. "Don't worry, Gazzy, nothing like that happens in real life," Max said helpfully, and the relief on his face was almost instantaneous. Once he returned to his pancakes, Max and Iggy exchanged various _'he is so going to get killed'_ glances.

"You're up early," Max looked at Iggy accusingly as she finished what was left of the pancakes. Iggy gave her an odd look and shrugged. "Here in the real world, most of us keep their jobs in the fall, too, Max," he pointed out. "I'm still working at the gas station all day."

"Oh," was her only response. Of course. Iggy would keep his everyday life. Nothing would change for him because of the new semester. Nudge would still sneak out to see him every day, and life would go on. Suddenly, jealousy flared inside her. What right of his was it to stay the same, to not move on, when that was all she had been doing? Why couldn't he go to college, give up the one he loved?

The hate and anger was gone just as quickly as it had come. When she shook her head, she felt horribly confused. Iggy didn't deserve that any more than she did. It wasn't fair, the way things had worked out, but that was the way her life had gone. This wasn't a fate she could ever push on anyone else.

"Time to go, Max." She looked down to see Gazzy tugging on her shirt slightly. And she almost smiled. With his large, round eyes, he looked almost the way he had when she had taken him to his first day of kindergarten. He had been so scared back then, and so young. Max sighed. If only the present day could be so simple.

She took a deep breath. "Okay," she breathed out. And even though some things were the same, like the ratty old backpack on her shoulders, her brother's hand in her own, and the sense of inevitable dread in her heart, things were about to change. For better? For worse? She didn't know.

But one way or another, today, she was going to find out.

* * *

The start of Fang's day was much different than Max's had been. Not just because he had awoken in a bed made for a prince. Not just because he had his breakfast brought up to him. Not just because he had woken up five hours later than Max had. When he woke up, Max was at school, cowering under a cafeteria table and trying not to get hit in the face by a flying blob of spaghetti.

Of course, he didn't know any of this.

All he knew was that yesterday he had made a promise to Max. And although it had been a promise from the heart, and he had meant every word of it, he didn't relish the idea of his mother's face when he told her that he was, in fact, engaged to one of the very servants that his mother had expressly warned him of.

Reluctantly, he got up out of bed, ate, and followed a routine much like the one Max had, but he had to admit that he was dragging his feet most of the way. His mother didn't need to know exactly that minute, did she? Maybe he'd wait after lunch. Come to think of it, he could probably wait until after dinner. And he wasn't seeing Max today. What if he waited until tomorrow morning to tell his mother?

_NO!_ The thought broke through his head like a lightning bolt, and he winced, crashing against the bathroom mirror, his toothbrush jammed down his throat an uncomfortable angle. _Fang, what the hell are you doing?_ He heard his sister's voice in his head. _You promised Max that you'd tell Mom today! You can't just chicken out at the last minute because you're afraid of your _mommy_! _

Gagging, he peeled himself off the mirror and coughed up the rest of the toothbrush distastefully. _Angel! How did you know about that?_ he asked her grouchily, and then remembered. _Oh, shit. Mind reader. Riiiiiiight._ He then staggered into his bedroom to see her sitting on his mattress cheerfully.

"Fang, this is stupid," she lectured him as he cringed. When had she started sounding so much like Max? "Listen, you big dummy, Mom is never going to listen to you unless you _tell her, _and _seriously, _that you love Max and she's the one you want to be with? Would she take you seriously now? Running and hiding instead of facing up to it? Damnit, be a man!"

He rolled his eyes. "Clean up the language, Angel. I don't know what truck drivers you've been hanging out with, but it isn't too pretty." He ignored the feeling that she was shooting daggers into the back of his head. After all, he got that look five times a day from Max.

"Fang, be serious." Her voice had switched to that which he reserved especially for people he hated, and he shuddered. Apparently it was unpleasant to be on the receiving end of the look. _Note to self: scratch the glare, _he thought, cringing. Upon seeing the look on his face, she sighed. "I'm sorry."

"No, you're right," he grumbled. "You always are." She grinned, having heard the six words she loved most in the entire world. "I know I have to tell her," he sighed. "But it's hard. It's hard to change. You always want to hold onto the way things used to be, and not change, because it's easier that way."

He looked out the window vaguely. "But I guess nothing good ever got done without a little change." Angel offered a small smile, and placed a hand on his shoulder lightly. "I will tell her, Angel," he looked back at her. "I'll have to."

"You can do it," she told him.

So without a backward glance, he walked out the door, and down the stairs to his mother's office.

He could only pray that he was doing the right thing.

* * *

But before any of that happened, before Fang even woke up, Max and Gazzy were standing in front of their new school. It was exactly seven forty-five, and although the world seemed to be moving around them at light speed, with the school buses pulling up, the laughing students, and the arriving teachers, they were standing still, hand-in-hand.

"Do you remember what I told you that day that I left you at your kindergarten classroom?" she asked him softly as she gripped his hand even tighter. Staring up at the school now, it seemed to her as if they were about to walk into the belly of a monster, and willingly. She gulped.

"No," he replied, frowning slightly.

She shook her head. "Me neither," she replied. "But I must have said something comforting, because later that day, you came home with a juice box in one hand, a smile on your face, and the strange lack of a wedgie." And with those words of wisdom, she lead him inside.

They parted ways almost at once. As Max had learned from visiting the school a few weeks earlier, most of the classrooms that Gazzy would be using were at the exact opposite end of the school, and so she let go of his hand, and merged into the crowd of swarming teenagers, each one of two sorts: the sort that missed their friends and were happy to be back, and the sort that, like Max, would have been considerably happier at the thought of an early death.

Her classroom was easy enough to find, considering that it was on the first floor, and about ten feet from her locker –which, apparently, had refused to open–. At the head of the class was the teacher that Max suspected would be teaching them; at the back, a group of laughing boys that she made a mental note not to get in the way of.

Carefully, she made her way to one of the empty desks and tried to appear as inconspicuous as possible. Having attention drawn to herself on the first day wasn't something that she was accustomed to, and she desperately wished she had something to do to busy herself with in order to pretend she was doing something worthwhile and productive, so as not to be interrupted.

But of course, the universe, in all of its infinite wisdom, had decided that this was not to be her fate.

"Oh. My. God. Where did you get your shoes?" Max looked up, snapping herself from her thoughts, her eyes coming to rest on the four girls who had somehow surrounded themselves around her desk. They were all wearing too much makeup, with obvious spray-tans and unrealistic highlights. For some reason, this made Max feel out of place, wishing she were more…orange, like they were.

"Uhm…my closet?" she asked uncertainly, and was rewarded with the high cackle of all of them giggling like mad, as though this were extremely funny, even though it was entirely the truth. They were an old, ratty pair of tennis shoes that she'd had for over a year, not nearly anything special.

The four girls all eyed her curiously, much to her chagrin, but before she could make a speedy escape, girl who had spoken first piped up again. "God, isn't she just so _cute_?" she asked, and the rest of them laughed that annoying, high-pitched giggle all over again. Staring at her as one might stare at a zoo animal –and Max definitely knew what that felt like– they were almost scary.

"What was your name again?" the girl asked, and even though Max didn't remember ever telling the girl her name in the first place, she blurted it out immediately. "Max, that's cute," the girl told her again, but it seemed silly, fake. And it was. "I'm Taylor. And this is Naomi, Courtney, and Maddy."

"Hey," Max mumbled. And they burst out laughing all over again. "You're new here, right?" the one called Naomi asked. Or maybe it was Courtney. In any case, Max didn't remember, or even remotely care. _Please just leave me alone, _she thought desperately. But of course, fate wasn't that kind.

"Let's be friends," Taylor suggested then, and for some reason, even though Max had fought Erasers, Flyboys and Whitecoats when she was much younger than this, Taylor, a normal, preppy high school girl, scared her more than any of them. So all she could do was nod.

It was then that the bell rang. "Come on!" she cried, and pulled Max up, out of her seat, and out the door. Max sighed. This certainly wasn't how she'd pictured her first day of high school starting. But she did know one thing – it was going to be a long day, and this was just the beginning.

Would she make it out alive?

* * *

**I can't begin to describe how sorry I am. It's been over a month since I updated this story, and in that time, I feel like I've let all of you down. When I first started writing the story, I was writing down an idea of mine for me, and the more reviews I got, the more I started writing for all of you. And without any warning, I dropped it. And for that, I'm so sorry. **

**A lot of things have been busy in my life, and I won't go into that here. But I promise that this story is a part of my life and I'm not going to just let it die, so here's another chapter. I'm going to spend a while rebuilding this story, with more updates soon. I'm not going to leave it hanging again, I promise. I'll stay until I finish it, at least. I'll give you all the story you deserve. **

**I know that a lot of people once read this story, and I probably lost quite a few readers. That makes me sad, but hopefully, those of you who are still waiting will enjoy the story. One way or another, I'm gonna finish thing, and you'll probably have another update before the end of the week, at the very latest. If I don't have the time, I'll make it anyway. **

**Thank you all for giving this story love and support, even if I haven't. **

**~Rachel**


End file.
